Kung Fu Panda Drabble collection
by Defiant-Candle
Summary: READ ACCOUNT FOR MORE INFO: this drabble has been handed over to Synchronised Harmony to continue. This is my discontinued drabble series centred mostly around Shen and his redemption story.
1. Tai Lung: The Rampage

He lashes out, smashing a lantern to the ground and setting it alight in an instant, flames blanketing the streets and spreading like a plague, a deathly cloud. He kneels and bathes his hands in it, relishing in the pain and remembering the scroll of Kung Fu of the Dragon Hands, the ability to maintain fire on one's hands using your chi. Normally there was a technique that would help students cope with the pain or in some cases blot it out all together. But Lung delved into the pain, using to feed his anger, using a Shadow Scroll skill he also learnt to amplify his strength, rage and fighting strength.

He stood up and strode through the flames into an untouched area of the streets, beholding the villages citizens running away from him and panicking, screaming.

He raises his fists. Once he was using this technique to best the Warlord Elephant when the titan invaded the outskirts of China with his army of pachyderms from Africa.

Now he uses it to set a hotel on fire with people still inside.

More screams littered the air. It infuriates Tai Lung even more, and he leaps and pounces, swinging his feet and fists, smashing through houses, obliterating statues and breaking innocent people here and there, too slow or stupid enough to stay in his way.

He is numb, and yet so alive, with seething burning, bubbling hatred. For everything.

This life, this disappointment, his abandonment as a cub, his betrayal by Shifu and Oogway, envy of the other students and the fact that after years of training, punishment, trials and learning all the scrolls of kung fu, being told time and time, and time again by his baba, that he was destined for greatness, and to obtain the dragon scroll- he was denied it.

His one defining achievement in his life, stripped from him by that stupid, loathsome tortoise and his lying manipulating father, his adoptive father!

Now he loses all control and proceeds to carve a path through the village, and bodies begin to litter the streets.

He hates everything. And wants everything to die, for prolonging and giving his miserable disappointing life existence.

He runs through the village, buildings collapsing in his wake- and stops, looking up the steps to the Jade Palace.

_Disappointment. Everything you fought for, trained for, bled for, suffered for. All for nothing._

His mind travels to the Jade Palace, to that chrome built scroll, snug in the dragon statue's mouth. Mocking him with its vantage point, unreachable for him.

He snarled, ferally, spit flecking and drooling out of his mouth, a hint of white within the saliva bleeding from his mouth.

"Mine." He rages bitterly. Gathering his chi and strength, he crouches and jumps.

The screams and roar of flames grow fainter as he soars through the sky and clouds, landing finally on the front of the entrance of the Jade Palace.

He doesn't bother to knock.

He charges and crushes his way through the front doors. He briefly stops.

Standing in front of the shallow pool underneath the dragon statue on the ceiling, is his father and his idol who both turn to see him.

Shock is on the face of his father, Shifu.

Hardly surprising.

"Tai-Lung..?" He manages to utter. A heart-wrenching moment of horror and realisation flickers across his face. Oogway stands motionless, hands gripping that puny staff of his.

Tai Lung crouched on his haunches.

"The scroll." He snarled.- "Give it to me."

When Shifu fails to respond. Tai Lung was a blur of grey powerful predatory muscle tearing itself towards him, claws out and ready for the kill. Shifu's expression registers shock, before he snaps into warrior mode and runs towards him, launching himself at Tai-Lungs face to deliver a repelling aerial snap kick.

Tai-Lung snarls and races forward.

Half a second passes. The two close the gap.

Suddenly Shifu's face shows fear, regret, a sort of shock that comes with the realisation of violating a precious tradition. Or hurting someone you love.

Tai-Lung's face doesn't.

His thoughts are only of devastation. Break the little panda's body in any way possible.

Blindly he swings his massive hand and smacks it into Shifu's hips, crunching it. Shifu has not time to scream or yell in pain as Tai lUng regains focus in the split second and smashes his fist into the red pandas body.

Shifu's broken body is sent skidding towards Oogway's feet, his former apprentice and adopted son not giving him a second thought.

He leaps up, the scroll within his grasp.

One way or another he will get that scroll.

Unless he stupidly forgets to take out the greatest Kung Fu master that is now up in the air with him.

His last vision is seeing his bruised and bloodied hand reaching for the scroll, red vision giving way into gold as Oogway strikes his head with his staff and then attacks his nerve and pressure points with his toes.

Then blackness.

**A/N: Yeah I know this is pretty short. I just sat down and wrote this in one sitting. This depicts Tai Lung's rampage in the Valley of Peace and then his attempt to take the Dragon Scroll.**

**Hope you like- R&R**


	2. Shen: The Sparring Match

Swing

Flap

Fwosh

The air surrounding the albino peacock was a blur of talons, blades and feather train. Soft thumps and mild creaking groans occasionally sounded from the wooden platform under his feet as Shen jumped, twisted, turned, pirouetted and swung his halberd polearm around his body, striking at imaginary foes or demons before he erased them from his mind with a sweeping slice of his feathered tail.

He snapped his head behind him and lashed out with a metal taloned foot, gutting another invisible enemy foolish enough to challenge him, before decapitating him with a horizontal swipe with his halberd.

Shen would practice his Cai Li Fo form everyday, every two hours, between breaks in his work overseeing his cannon factory production and planning his conquest strategies in his war room. He would rehearse every possible attack and counter-attack technique that came into his paranoid mind that he believed would defend himself from whatever his enemies would try on him. Swordplay with his halberd and throwing knives at targets on the ground and above it, he was truly a sight to behold, and a force to be reckoned with.

Which made for all the shame that he was forced to resort to his cannons yet again when he was confronted by the furious five and that wretched damned panda.

He chose to pay their escape from his usually effective weapons no mind. The panda would return to him with questions. Namely about the eyes of his train, and his involvement of the night his beloved parents were taken from him. Shen inwardly relished at the vision of seeing the panda's face when he told him the truth. Or better yet, bend it so that any remote hope of his parents sacrificing themselves for him was dashed, making him crumble in despair.

Then perhaps he would finish him with his swordplay. Incapacitate him with his knives first, then take the sword and go straight for his-

"Practicing again?"

Shen turns his head a fraction, frozen in a counter-block stance as the leader of his Wolf army, ….. stepped up a wooden ladder to the platform he was on.

Shen resisted the urge not to roll his eyes. The dog's attempts to strike up conversations were frankly terrible to say the least.

"No, you impertinent hound I am reciting for my performance in front of the emperor."

"Really?" Huo, the one- eyed wolf boss stepped off the ladder and turned towards him, his head cocked to one side and one of his ears raised. "You know the ribbons are in that box of yours downstairs if you wanted to use those again-"

Shen couldn't blush, but his quills and head feathers flared up indignantly, a sign known by many of his guards to show that he was agitated, usually furious. Huo had been around Shen long enough to know however that the movement was more out of embarrassment than rage. Shen meanwhile was cursing himself inside for making himself be sarcastic in the presence of a wolf who after years of serving under him still couldn't detect the cynical tone inflected in his lord's speech and considering hurling a knife into the wolf's skull at the same time. Instead he turned and leapt in front of Huo, red eyes glinting with hysterical rage. Huo inched back a bit as Shen's face appeared a few centimeters before his.

"Perhaps-" He hissed to the cowering wolf- "You would wish to speak about that even louder, for fear that everyone in this factory has not HEARD YOU!" He finished yelling.

Ears pressed to the back of his neck, Huo sealed his mouth. Shen settled in his normal standing position, moving his halberd away from the wolf as he did.

"I didn't think so."

Huo regained his voice

"Sorry, L-Lord Shen I- wasn't thinking, sir- I didn't mean to humiliate, you..." He gruffly apologised and trailed off as he lowered his head, his weight of his guilt stopping him from speaking

Shen turned his back to him and resumed the spinning of his blade around.

"No, no you weren't."

His sword whistled through the air

"And its not thinking that will get you killed one day, General. You may be brutish in your battles and may use the odd cunning, but there are newer, more refined ways of fighting."

He briefly paused, his sword facing upward in a mock salute.

"New methods derived from the most powerful muscle in your body-"

"Your glutes?"

"I- NO!- the brain, you imbecile!" Shen raised his voice again, pointing one feather to his small but fierce looking head, before he regained control of his temper and lowered his voice to its regular silky and crisp level.

"-that will soon make physical combat redundant, diminishing to a pointless and destructive art form."

Huo knew Shen was referring to Kung Fu, that infernal martial art that empowered ordinary animals to become freaks harbouring untold power. In all his life, Huo simply needed to know how to punch, kick and block to keep him alive on the battlefield. That and his trusty hammer never let him down. Huo resented those who did martial arts. It made people inflexible, too rigid in their art and unable to truly adapt to combat, bound by their stupid code of honour to truly seize power on the battlefield, or what those piety, uptight self-righteous wimps called 'cheating'.

Huo always liked watching Shen practice and fight however.

Few people ever have the privilege of watching male peafowl fight. Those who did left saying how they were entranced by the balletic spinning dance of feather and steel produced by the most skilled and strongest of peafowl. After watching Shen practicing, he couldn't blame them. He had often wondered that if not for the male's extravagant feather trains or the female noble's coquettish to elegant behaviour that peacock's fighting styles was what made them so revered and fascinating.

Only swans have been known to match the peacocks grace with their flowing and dynamic spiralling patterns of their wings and swooping necks.

Watching Shen hypnotised Huo, not just when the eyes of his train bore down into his one good eye and he had to look away, but how his seemingly small and delicate appearance gave way to a precise and deadly fighting machine.

Huo was not ignorant to the fact that Shen was using kung fu in his sword technique, which had raised a question that had been burning in his mind since it was made known that Shen had declared war on kung fu, and only now did he decide was the time to ask it.

"My Lord, if you hate kung fu so much, why do you still use it?"

Shen finished an aerial slash and landed flawlessly on the platform, his body frozen briefly as he briefly muled for an appropriate answer. Then he responded.

"I use it the same way one may use a poison or venom, so that in doing so, I may find a cure for it. Fighting Kung Fu with Kung Fu simply will not cut it. You must get it into your mindset to understand what gives these backward warriors their power. Then I can take it from them, and make them powerless. They will be shown to the world as chaotic fools clinging desperately to an obsolete way of life."

So kung fu was a disease to him now? Huo wondered in his mind.

"It's just, you're so good at your art sir."

At this point the Peacock turned his head slightly in his direction.

"And if you get rid of all kung fu, then, that will just leave you as the last man to use it."

Shen mused over this, then simply shrugged.

"Then I will simply stop using it. Any idiot can swing a sword and throw knives without the aid of outdated 'mystical energies' and sorcery or balanced emotions." He snorted with mirth.

Huo walked to the left to stare down at the city, speaking as he did.

"So, doesn't matter what you do or use to get to what you want. Anything or anyone is a means to an end." He looked at the city sprawling out before him, his one eye gazing at Gongmen, yet not looking at it at all as he was lost in thought.

The peacock, astounded by Huo's somewhat philosophical outlook on his way of accomplishing his goals did not show his surprise, choosing to narrow his eyes and glare in a condescending way at his insubordinate and speak in an accusatory tone.

"And what is **that** supposed to mean? Hmm?"

Huo looked down before turning and looking back up at his lord, his expression blank

"Nothing sir, just, thinking."

Shen was about to speak, before deciding against it and continued his pattern.

Neither of them spoke as Shen continued to practice. It was Huo again who decided to restart the conversation.

"Want to spar?"

Shen stopped again, this time shoddily bringing his form to a halt.

"And why would I want to do that?"

Huo shrugged.

"I dunno. Just thought its been a while since you actually had a proper fight with someone."

Shen raised an eyebrow, his tone condescending.

"Have you forgotten that I flawlessly defeated two Kung Fu masters in the time it took a fool like you to blink?"

"Yeah- I know about the fight. And then you nearly got pummeled by Thundering Rhino and had to use your cannon."

Shen turned to face the wolf.

"I **planned** to have the master believe he could beat me, to make him think he won. The best victories are the ones achieved right when the enemy is believed to have the advantage."

Huo raised his paws.

"Just saying. For a big slow guy with an even bigger hammer, he was able to block all of your knives. I heard he even used his horn."

Shen stalked towards the wolf.

"Your point being?" he asked menacingly with his voice drawing itself down to a hiss.

Huo this time was undaunted.

"I'm just saying, without that cannon to back you up, you think you could have taken him? Cos I mean, you may be really fast and all but you're not exactly made of muscle and armour."

Shen did not like being reminded of his physical limitations. As many times as he has found a way to compensate for his small build, his fragile bones and atrophied muscles as a result of his defective birth by training extensively, he could do nothing to escape the fact that he was well, weak. At least, compared to most Kung Fu masters anyway, and he hated himself for that. Years of feeling inferior and isolated, his small and vulnerable body, making him a joke, making the most minimally physically demanding tasks a struggle for him. It was this deep rooted shame, coupled with his inferiority complex that motivated him to train until he bled or couldn't feel anything. His goal, if not his entire life was devoting himself to show others that he was not weak.

"What is your point in this conversation, asides then to risk your own head?"

Shen was once again up close to Huo.

His expression on the other hand was somewhat softer and his voice did not quaver as he spoke, though was smaller somewhat.

"I just wanted to make sure, you were, you know, ok. That you can take care of yourself and stuff."

Shen blinked.

"Like, you know"- Huo stumbled awkwardly- "Able to defend yourself."

Shen allowed himself to roll his eyes and straightened up. _Sentimental mutt-_

"General, perhaps you have forgotten who perhaps you are talking to? That panda must hit you quite hard on the head if you believe I still need to be schooled like a child."

He turned and paced to the other side of the platform.

Huo had the nerve to step forward.

"I'm not trying to talk down to you Shen. Those five Kung Fu masters and that Panda looked like they meant business and the last thing I want is to see you getting hurt again." Huo burst out. Then he bit his tongue and looked very ashamed. Shen stopped, rigid.

Another awkward silence passed between the two. Huo was quick to fill the gap again.

"I'm sorry- Lord Shen- my lord- forgive me- the panda did, knock me on the head quite hard- I shouldn't have forgotten your title." He knelt on one knee. "may I be severely punished and have my back scored with the cat o' nine tails for my insubordinance."

Huo closed his one eye. Shen turned and Huo could hear his trail dragging across the platform. He felt something cold and thin pressed under his chin. He opened his eye and saw Shen's beady crimson eyes glaring back at him.

Shen could flick his blade and slit his throat, or lunge forward and slice through his neck. Shen had gotten much more creative with his executions on those who dared to disobey or make careless mistakes. He could end Huo's life right here and right now.

Huo could only wonder what thoughts went through Shen's mind though he could tell that they weren't good. No one made a fool of Shen and lived to see the next day, especially those who undermined his authority.

Shen pushed the flat edge of the blade up, forcing Huo to stand or be skewered through the face, never breaking eye contact.

Huo could only hear his heart beating as he looked back into his Lord's eyes. He closed his eye again, praying it would be quick.

Then he felt the blade move away from his chin. Shen moved his blade and twirled it until the long handle rested between his arm and body as Huo opened his eyes.

"I suppose." He finally spoke casually. "I could do with some practice for my endurance. Thin air is hardly a worthy training opponent, wouldn't you agree?"

Huo quickly nodded, and Shen continued before he could speak. Huo found he didn't have the nerve.

"Pick a sword and let us get this over with."

Huo nodded and ran to the ladder, shimmying down it to where the weapons rack was. He grabbed an ordinary broadsword favoured by his troops and scaled back up it. He turned to Shen, and brought his weapon up in a guard position.

"Now, are you sure you are re-" Shen surged forward in a lunge and Huo barely deflected the blow by inches, yelling in surprise. Shen brought it up and swung at his legs which Huo caught, and then angled up to shield his head from an downwards strike.

There was a brief pause, then Huo pushed the blade off and crouched, swiping at the peacocks legs. Shen was in the air, propelled by his feather train as he jumped back and landed a few feet away, pointing his sword at him. Huo stepped forward with a high swipe. He made sure to make his moves obvious so that Shen would have a chance to know which angle he would strike. He didn't want to accidentally kill the Lord of Gongmen city after all.

Shen turned to his right and angled his blade so that Huo's slid down his and hit the deck. Shen brought his sword up and swung it left aiming for Huo's head. Huo glanced at Shen and ducked in time, standing up and swinging his blade at Shen's side. Shen caught it and shunted it successfully away, before jumping forward. Huo coughed as his unclenched stomach folded in from Shen's side kick, making him stagger back a little to the edge of the platform. He wobbled there, afraid of losing his balance.

Shen didn't slow. He ran forward for another swipe. Huo bunched his legs and jumped, somersaulting over Shen and landing with a thud on his feet, then turned and swung his blade to smash into Shen's. They held their blades clashed together. Huo took this chance in the moment to speak up.

"You're doing good." He panted –" Just wanted to let you know, you had the advantage when I was next to the ladder. A good kick would have knocked me off for sure."

Shen replied.

"And end this match prematurely. I think not."

Huo pushed against Shen's sword and saw him strain and spoke again.

"You also may need to work on your blocking."

Shen frowned slightly as he continued.

"That was a good shunt back there- just need to focus more on counter-attacks- which is normal considering you've been swinging around at thin air and all so…"

Shen broke the lock as Huo railed on and opened his train, swinging and knocking the wolf off his feet. He fell on his back and Shen was on him in an instant, his blade once again at Huo's throat. Shen spoke again at the stunned wolf.

"I do not need defense when I have speed and precision on my side."

Huo shook his head and glanced up at Shen.

"Works both ways, my lord."

Shen felt something poke his left ribcage and looked to see Huo's sword aimed at his chest. A small grunt of annoyance emitted from Shen's beak. Huo smiled a bit.

Shen stepped off the wolf and allowed him to stand, eyeing him with a level of disdain.

He spun his halberd around on his feathers in a salute. Huo stepped back and held his blade with two hands.

"Again!" Shen shouted.

This time Huo attacked first. Shen deflected and sidestepped every move, dancing around the wolf in an attempt to confuse him.

Huo kept track however and the two fighters circled each other, swords clashing around them.

The duel continued for a while until both fighters were worn out. Huo was impressed by Shen's stamina and Shen in turn was satisfied he could keep the wolf on guard.

It was then that Shen decided make things more intense.

"Again. Faster this time."

Huo looked up.

"Are you sure? You may want to-"

"Your concern is noted." Shen dismissed with a wave of his feathered arm. "Now, faster."

Huo swung his sword around on his wrist, his uncertainty betraying his confident stance.

"Ok…"

Shen initiated the first attack, jumping high and delivering a flurry of vicious strikes. Huo caught the first few and ducked the last few, rolling under the flying peacock and swinging low. The peacock deflected it again and pressed the offensive, with Huo ducking and striking back with attacks of his own.

"Faster!" Shen yelled again between strikes. "You say you want me to be better, then strike faster!"

Huo began to pant as his attack speed increased . He swore he could see worry on the lord's face but he pushed the thought aside.

Sparks were beginning to fly off the blades chipping against each other.

"FASTER!" Shen yelled with determination and lashed out, nearly taking off Huo's sword arm.

Huo only growled and began to swing harder. The effort he had to put in was intense.

Shen was having none of it. He jumped and slashed downwards. Huo moved and Shen's sword became embedded in the wooden floor. Huo was behind Shen as he tried to wedge his trapped sword. Realising it was stuck, Shen spun around.

Huo's eye widened as silver blades shot out from Shen's sleeves. Swinging frantically he batted away at them, knocking them out of the air.

One got past and sliced the top of his left shoulder as he tried to evade it. He grunted and raised his sword arm to touch the wound-

Shen spun through the air and kicked the flat edge of Huo's sword, sending it skittering to the floor.

Huo barely had time to block a knife-hand feather strike as Shen continued the fight.

The peacock moved his wings in circular motions, showing mastery of the Cai Li Fo form unarmed as he traded blows with the general.

Shen lunged forward, and Huo side-stepped and gave him what he judged to be a light kick.

With a grunt, Shen rode the momentum, soaring back to where his sword lay in the floor. He landed on top of the sword handle, reached down and grabbed it, and with a powerful flap of his tail, pushed himself up. The sword jerked up sharply, flicking splinters and forcing Huo to cover his face.

When he lowered his arms, he jumped to his left as Shen came at him with his halberd.

Huo began to panic

"Shen wait!"

"I won't wait! I will not wait! The enemy will not wait!" Shen swung at the wolf trying to evade as best as he could.

"No-one will give you a chance to recover, to let you breathe. Those who are weak don't deserve a second chance- none!"

"Shen- wait!"

But Huo's pleas were in vain as Shen pressed his manic assault.

"No second chance- you win or you die- its that simple- no-one will pity you- it slows them down, and when you're slowed down you fail!"

"Shen!"

"You were slow and you lost your eye! You were slow and you let that panda get away! You couldn't match the wit of a simpleton panda and now my future as ruler of China is in danger!"

"Shen please!"

Huo soon realised that he was the one losing control, not Shen. Flashes and images came back under the tide of emotion and pain, old wounds searing back into his mind.

-_Rejected by his brothers for befriending a weak and sickly peacock chick_

_- His left eye in pain after the giant panda farmer crushed it with that hammer of his_

_- Listening to the screams of pandas as his pack attacked the village._

_- Counselling Shen, his nervous breakdowns and nightmares as a result of being exiled from his own home, his journey to madness caused by the deterioration of his sanity despite Huo's best efforts to placate him, to comfort and protect him._

_- The shame his parents would have felt if they saw him today, the shame he felt when he saw one panda still alive and knowing he failed Shen._

"And now, we will all pay the price for letting ourselves be weak. We have to butcher everyone who challenges us! Everyone!"

_-It is then that Huo begins to realise that it has all become too much. The pain, the violence. Too much, just too much madness._

He leapt over to his sword as Shen closed in, tripping and falling down in the process. He glanced up at the advancing peacock as he tried to grab the sword a foot away from his hand.

"I am unconquerable!" the ranting peacock was seized in a haze of bloodlust as he came closer. "I will not be defeated. I am LORD SHEN! All the corpses, all the bodies, all the weak. They are merely step-ups for me! And they will not stand in my way. No-one!"

"NOOOOOOOO!" Huo didn't feel the sword handle touch his palm, he only roared and swung with all his might, hoping to save himself from the oncoming blow.

His eye was closed, he couldn't see.

But he felt the thump of his blade hitting something, and heard the agonised yell of his lord. Then the wood creaking as the peacock's body fell to the ground.

Huo opened his eye and recoiled in horror as he saw Shen lying on the bamboo deck, breathing shallowly.

"SHEN!" he screamed.

"What's going on up there?" One of the gorilla guards stationed below heard Huo's scream and clambered up the ladder. Huo was too busy kneeling next to his old friends body to notice.

"What did you do!" The gorilla snarled, his massive fists up and ready to crush the wolf.

Huo was shaking as he looked up at the guard

"I- I didn't mean to- he just came at me and I-"

He was interrupted by a coughing sound and looked down at Shen, who was beginning to push himself up.

"Shen- my Lord." he spoke, remembering to use his title this time. He looked down at Shen as he lifted his rightwing , a small patch of blood in a jagged cut through his silk gown under his armpit.

"Your omnipotence!" the gorilla guard cried out. "You're injured!"

He looked up at Huo and thundered towards him. Huo grunted and struggled as the much larger gorilla grabbed him by the neck and held him off the ground, feet dangling.

Huo looked at Shen, whose back turned to him as he sat upright, his expression was blank, revealing nothing as he stared at the blood on his feathered hand.

The gorilla growled

"Don't worry my lord, I'll crush this runt for wounding you."

He struggled, kicking his feet and gagging for breath, but the gorilla would not relent. Huo's vision begin to darken as the gorilla's fingers began to crush his neck.

As he choked and began to lose consciousness, his last thoughts were that he was sorry.

"Leave him."

"But, my lord…"

"Put. Him. Down." Shen ordered darkly.

Huo fell to the ground coughing and panting heavily.

Shen got to his feet, still holding his side. The gorilla kneeled on all fours.

"Shall I send for a doctor, my lord."

At first Shen said nothing, his gaze was distant, then

"No thank you. It is but a scratch. I do not require aid."

The gorilla opened his mouth to argue, but instead chose to reply with

"Of course, my lord, I didn't mean to imply that…"

"Yes yes, I am aware. Now, leave us."

The gorilla looked like he was about to object again, than decided to obey and bowed low, before making his way to the ladder and scaling down to the lower deck.

Shen turned and ambled slowly to the platforms edge. He stood there under the concerned gaze of Huo, before the wolf finally spoke.

"My, my lord. Are, are you ok?"

When Shen said nothing, Huo pressed on.

"You, you really scared me there. I, thought I…"

Huo gulped as he spoke.

"I just- I was under stress and I had a long day, I thought this would take my mind off what was going on and, and… but I lost control and…"

Shen was still silent.

"I…I'm sorry. I, I should be executed."

Shen shifted his gaze to the east, his right.

Huo lowered his head, and turned to go.

"I am pathetic."

Huo stopped and turned back to his lord.

"What?"

Shen looked down at his wound.

"One strike. One hit from the sword. The mighty lord of Gongmen City," Shen spoke with biting self-loathing- "Struck down by one blow from his insubordinate."

Huo walked slowly back up to the peacock.

"Well, you were caught off guard and I'm surprised that hit didn't kill you."

He raised his hand and throw a very weak punch at Shen's wing.

"Tougher than you look, eh champ?" He weakly cheered, trying in vain to cheer Shen up.

Huo thought for a moment, then spoke up.

"I remember how I felt when that tigress kicked my spear out of my hands when we brought those kung fu masters to you. I mean, come on! I could take the panda any day, but that cat scares me. I wouldn't last five secs against her. Twenty maybe if I'm lucky enough to throw in a few shots."

He looked back at the peacock

"We can't beat everyone all the time, my lord."

Shen seemed to pay him no attention and lowered his head.

"I sent away the Soothsayer."

Huo lifted his head, shocked by this revelation as Shen continued.

"She had the gall to tell me that my parents died shortly after they exiled me. That sending me away was what killed them."

Huo silently listened as Shen continued.

"Huh, death by a broken heart? Can you imagine something so...pathetic."

Huo glanced to the side.

"Hard to imagine something worse, milord."

Shen didn't respond to that. He either didn't hear or didn't bother to respond.

Then he spoke more quieter.

"How will history remember me, Huo?" He softly spoke using his name for the first time in years. "How will the children of the future see me? The man who overcame his weaknesses to save China from an outdated way of life. Or just a lonely, confused man who used his own pain and suffering as tools to become the most powerful man in China."

Huo was taken aback by this quiet surge of melancholy from the peacock, before he chose to respond.

"You're not alone. Shen." He risked putting a paw on the birds shoulder. "You know that more than anyone else. You have my pack, the gorillas, your soothsayer who i'm sure still cares for you," he paused for a brief second. "And me."

Shen looked slightly in Huo's direction. His eyes were glistening somewhat.

"I am always alone."

"Shen…"

"No-one UNDERSTANDS!" Shen hissed as he snapped at Huo.

"You don't understand what it means to be a defective runt, to be an outsider with hardly anyone to appreciate your gifts and accept you for who are. You haven't felt yourself crumble like a baby after a few mean words thrown at you by street urchins and the scum in classes, to take refuge in your own room and spend lonely hours inventing the weapons of tomorrow only to rejected by the people you love who you wanted to be proud of you. To be abandoned and neglected by YOUR OWN PARENTS AND HAVE YOUR OWN SANITY STRIPPED AWAY FROM YOU!" Shen whispered bitterly, his voice for the first time revealing his pent up anger and inner pain.

"To the point of which your own life is too painful to live, where only your achievements allow you some solace from the reality of your own miserable existence."

Huo felt something inside him die. His ears sagged down by his lowly hung head.

Before he could stop himself, his arms are around Shen's neck.

He lowered his head onto the peacock's shoulder as he pulled him in his hug.

Shen's body was rigid. That didn't come as a surprise to Huo.

Then he felt something cold and sharp pressed to his left cheek.

He pulled back to see the feather shaped knife in Shen's hand. He looked at his old friend's eyes, devoid of sympathy and emotion.

"Do not touch me, ever again."

Huo stepped back, letting go of Shen.

Huo couldn't stomach the fact that Shen had just rejected an attempt by Huo to rekindle their friendship.

"I thought, we'd be us again like old times. The puppy and the peacock, remember?"

"….Go."

"I just wanted to, for the sake of our friendship."

"It died along with those pandas in that valley on that damned day. Now, tend to the wolves. Make sure their preparations are complete and the cannons are ready. The ships must set sail the moment the moon reaches its apex and the tide is at its highest tonight."

"You shouldn't have to do this to yourself! I just wanted you to lighten up and be happy for once!"

"LEAVE! ME! ALONE!"

Huo stepped back even further from the screaming peacock, his face aghast with anguish.

Shen regained his composure before speaking in a cold dead voice.

"Your compassion is a sentiment to the weak minded." He looked out to the horizon. "I will not be burdened by it."

Huo clenched his teeth. Then he strode angrily to the ladder. Before he made to step down, he turned one last time to Shen.

"Like it or not Shen." He stepped on the ladder. "You are never alone."

He stepped down the ladder.

"Happy New Year, Shen."

Shen said nothing, only staring out into the land that one day would all be his, his eyes aglow with ambition and lust for power.

Huo reached the bottom of the ladder, turning his head away from the gorilla guard so that he would not see the one tear sliding down his right cheek. He would not cry. He was tougher than that.

He knew he had to be for the near future, and if Shen was to live. As the one who always protected Shen from his enemies and bullies from childhood, he knew that he was the stronger out of the two.

But tonight he felt weaker than the peacock.

He felt alone.

**A/N: Hope you liked**

**This was set between after Po's first confrontation with Shen and the Five's attempt to destroy the factory, just after Shen sent away the Soothsayer.**

**This is a friendship piece between Shen and Wolf Boss, inspired by gothicorca1895 and other awesome KFP authors on this website. **

**Huo is supposed to be my chinese word for fire, the seasonal word for it. I couldn't find a proper word for it but thought it sounded like a cool name for the Wolf Boss. If there's any hiccups I've made with this could you mention it in your reviews so I can get my chinese right? Appreciate**

**The use of kung fu like a poison to discover a cure was a reference to Knights of the Old Republic II the Sith Lords, from Kreia, a Sith who hated the force and wanted to destroy it. Awesome game btw.**

**R&R!**


	3. Shen vs Po, Part 1

**A/N: Glad to see I've got some positive reviews and faves. Your praise really makes my day. Not to sound vain or anything.**

**For those who don't know me my name is Defiant Candle. I am a guy, and a fan of a lot of things, both kiddy and serious, but mostly go for action/adventure stories. I'm 18 years old, but I believe that I have Aspergers/ADD, making me have the mind of a 14 year old. Just thought I'd get that in the clear. My writing isn't the best but I aim to use empathy and emotion in my writing to fully make my characters shine. Villains are the most interesting because they tend to be the weakest people and have the most frustrating lives. If you look on my faves you'll see that I like stories about redemption and bad guys turning good. It sounds silly but I just enjoy them because I am able to emphasise with their pain and self-loathing and the final release and achievement of inner peace when they are full redeemed. I like looking at connections and consequences of actions and free-will and what can influence them as they are key to making or breaking heroes.**

**I understand of course that there are certain actions some people in history have done that are beyond forgivable- abuse, neglect, deception, cruelty for example, but empathy and sympathy are the only way in which we can understand these villains and therefore understand how these actions can be avoided, and if possible to give those who have fallen a second chance. IF possible. This doesn't mean I'm gonna try and justify the Holocaust or other things the worst psychopaths in real life and in fiction have done, I'm just trying to say that we must UNDERSTAND that like heroes, villains aren't born, but made. Sometimes, shit just happens and we end the worst for it, even when we think it isn't our fault, which makes us victims and so the downward spiral into becoming a villain begins until we become the thing we despise. Emotions can be just as condemning as they are liberating and fate can be as cruel as it is fortuitous and sometimes the view of certain actions as black and white can be seen as naïve just as well as it guides our moral compass. **

**I've done fics for stuff I'm into, mostly Mass Effect and Halo but they're well, kinda bad. I decided that I'd focus on more simpler stuff and so Kung Fu Panda fanfiction caught my eye. I've got nothing but love for some of the excellent stuff they've done on this web- gothicorca1895, Willowplwm, MaximumXRideX24, Peter the Muggle are fantastic writers and I love the Po/Tigress, Shen and Tai Lung pieces. They are awesome to read and have given me more reasons to love Kung Fu Panda.**

**So this is my next piece. Shen vs Po Part 1!**

* * *

"I LOVE YOU GUYS!"

"What kinda battle cry is tha-OOFMPPH!"

The wolf lieutenant was pummeled into the ground as Po, Shifu, Masters Ox and Croc and the Furious Five began what Po called the 'victory attack', the final assault. They struck, block, kicked and head-butted, working as one as they smacked wolf and gorilla all over the place, clearing themselves a path to one very distressed looking Shen and an uncertain looking Huo holding a torch next to the fuse of Shen's giant cannon.

"WHY AREN'T WE FIRING!" Shen was in hysterics. The irate peacock looked at Huo.

"They're taking out our gunners, sir. They're getting close!"

Shen looked back up at the panda thundering towards him, who back-punched a wolf and rubbed his nose with the same hand, eyes focused on Shen with a confident smile on his face.

He was coming for him.

Shen gritted his beak and miraculously managing to keep control of his bladder, screamed at Huo.

"F- FIRE!- FIRE AT THEM!"

Huo's eye widened in horror as he looked back at his pack. They were fighting back as hard as they could, but they were getting overwhelmed. Some still lay unconscious on the boats that were blocking the canal that led out of the city.

_Did he just order me to…No._

"But sir." Huo tried to reason with Shen- "We'll kill our own!"

Shen was having none of it.

"I SAID FIRE AT THEM. FIRE!"

Huo flinched from the screaming.

But inside his resolve was stock still.

This has gone on for enough, and Shen had gone too far.

He turned to Shen.

And throw down his torch.

"No."

Part of him asked if he was contemplating suicide for defying Shen. But he wasn't dead. Yet.

He began to speak to the peacock, who was visibly shaking with both fear and rage.

"I'm tired of doing this. Shen."

"Wh-What?" Shen hissed at Huo.

"I can't do it anymore. All the people you've killed. All the people you plan to kill. I'm a soldier and yes, that's exactly what soldiers do. Kill. But there's only so many deaths he can take," He shook his head slowly, "before he starts to crack."

Shen seemed to lose all the tension behind his eyes. His face softened up a bit.

He could hear the sound of fists hitting his men and the footsteps getting closer. He had to act. There was no way out of this situation without a drastic and horrific solution, and Huo was betting every inch of his luck, if not his own life to ensure that Shen would listen to him.

"We've lost, Shen. We have to surren-"

Huo blinked as he nearly finished his sentence.

His mistake.

There was a sickening thud as Huo opened his eyes in time to see Shen's eyes glowing with fury, eyes drawn to slits and an extended wing as he finished hurtled something in Huo's direction.

Huo felt himself stagger back from the impact.

Felt something lodged in his chest, shoulder and belly.

He looked down.

Silver knife handles. Sticking out of his body

Huo clenched his teeth. Gasped in pain. Tasted his own blood.

He grabbed at the wounds, stumbled, and fell off the cannon towards the water.

The rest seemed to happen in slow motion. Huo saw Shen soar forward, and for half a second thought that Shen had instantly regretted what he had done and was reaching out to save him.

But he was bitterly corrected as he saw Shen's face pointing the direction of the Kung Fu Masters and his wolves and gorillas. His eyes were aflame with malice and determination, focussing only on the panda. Huo tried to reach for Shen as he seemed to float gracefully through the air and land on top of the massive cannon as the momentum caused it to lower the barrel down to aim right at the kung fu masters at point blank range.

"Shen….." He know he couldn't stop him. His friends were dead. That plush cuddly panda was gonna die too along with his friends, and for once he felt sorry for those who practiced kung fu, praying they could escape Shen's cannons and maybe find a way to save him from himself.

Before it was too late, though Huo couldn't help but feel a nagging doubt that it already was.

He hit the water and felt the cold darkness consume him. He thought he saw light, but then realised it was the sparks given off from Shen's metal talons scraping against the metal hull of the cannon, and the fuse being lit. A explosion of fiery white flared in Huo's blurred vision as the cannon fired and he fell into the black.

**A/N: SUSPENSE! TRAGEDY! Or so we think. I mean, if you're reading this than you may or not have seen Kung Fu Panda and know what**

**I don't own Kung Fu Panda x3- hope this makes up for the past three chapters.**

**A more melancholy look at Shen killing off Wolf Boss at the dip of the hat. Hope you enjoyed.**

**Next will be the final fight between Po and Shen.**


	4. Shen vs Po Part 1: Flashbacks 1

**A/N: Back again!**

**Shen vs Po Part II –Flashbacks 1**

Shen gaped in disbelief and anger, as Po spun in mid-air, holding the giant flaming cannon-ball, moving so fast that he morphed into a ball of black and white, its pattern all too well resembling the Yin/Yang symbol that had haunted his dreams and cursed his fate.

_No, NO! _Shen thought-_ IMPOSSIBLE!_

Po finished spinning, landed on the make-shift raft raft he stood on, spun with the cannonball sparking and spinning in his hands and on his last spin, raised his arm high and hurtled the cannonball back at Shen's cannon

"Skadoosh."

Shen 's disbelief kept him rooted on the spot, to the point that he was standing in shock right when the re-directed cannon ball blazed through the bow of his ship and down the gullet of his cannon, causing it to rock back from the impact, while the fire's caused from the impact set off the gunpowder stored in the baskets littered around it.

Shen saw white, then blacked out-

* * *

"_Shen? Shen honey? It's time to wake up."_

_The small peacock chick moaned and pulled his covers over his head, attempting to shield himself from the goats prodding hoof. The Soothsayer rolled her eyes with resignation._

"_Come on now Shen. Your parents will be finding plenty of things to do on their day off. You may not get another chance for a whole month!"_

_At the mention of his parents, the tiny prince throw up the covers that were on him and hurried, or rather, stumbled due to the flowing lengths of his night robes getting caught under his feet behind a screen that stood in front of a cupboard. He opened and ripped a smart silver silk robe from a hanger and began to change with incredible haste._

_The Soothsayer chuckled to herself. The little prince had been preparing for this day for a week now, and his adolescent and excitable but sharp mind had kept him constantly reminded that one day, this day, his parents would have a day off from their duties overseeing the beautiful city of Gongmen and have time to spend with their son. Shen had been working on his design and miniature model for a year, the model of course taking the longest to create. When the Soothsayer asked him what it was, Shen said it was something that 'will change China forever', in his words of course. The boy was ten years old and had a keen and creative mind. When he wasn't enjoying art and having to sit through the occasional dull etiquette lesson in manners and how to be a prince, he would be in his lab and working on creating new weird and thankfully wonderful things. The Soothsayer, named Ying Song would always enter Shen's laboratory- with his permission of course; Shen was very fussy about his privacy- and watch him demonstrate his inventions with her or with Huo or both as his audience. Huo would always be entertained by Huo's inventions, even if on occasions he did not have the required…..intelligence to appreciate just what the heck Shen just made. Shen astonishingly showed incredible patience, well most of the time with Huo's slowness, mostly because he was one of the only people who would watch him demonstrate his inventions in the first place asides from Ying herself._

_But today, hopefully, that was about to change._

"_Shen?" Ying walked past the front of the large bed and watched the large screen tremble a bit as Shen accidentally bumped against it in his speedy changing._

_Then finally he rushed, his three toed feet padding against the marble floor uncovered by the rooms carpets._

"_Today's the day!" the white chick squeaked, fully dressed in his robe._

"_Yes it is!" Ying smiled as she walked up to Shen and straightened out his sleeves and shirt._

_Shen struggled against her hooves-_

"_Nana!"_

"_Just sorting you out. You can't show your invention in front of your parents looking scruffy now do you?"_

_Shen groaned and let Ying brush off invisible dust and smooth out his robe. Then he piped up._

"_Have you seen him? Has he arrived yet?"_

"_Who?"_

_There was a rapt knocking on the large door to Shen's room and Ying strode over to answer it._

_Opening it she saw the face of an antelope guard._

"_Yes?" She asked._

"_Good Morning Soothsayer," he spoke with a curt bow –"I believe our prince is acquainted with this pup."_

"_Who-"_

_Suddenly a child's high-pitched voice was heard._

"_SHEN!"_

_And that was all the warning she got before a black-grey bundle of fur rushed towards her, tripped over the guard's pike and rolled head over paw into the chamber at Shen's feet._

_The body shook his head and stood a little shakily to his feet, brushing himself off._

"_Huo Dun." Ying spoke, crossing her arms and glaring at the 9 year old wolf puppy, who grinned innocently at her and Shen who smiled back._

_The antelope guard was not impressed._

"_Young man, I strictly told you to remain in the hallway until you were allowed in."_

"_Sorry sir." The puppy flattened his ears against his head and drooped his head when he turned back to look at him. The Soothsayer couldn't help but smile at the over-excited pup._

_She lifted a hoof at the antelope guard,_

"_It's ok, Jing, Shen knows this puppy."_

_The antelope looked at the prince, who nodded to confirm Ying's statement, then huffed shortly and clopped briskly out of the room, still holding his pike up at guard attention._

_Ying looked down at the puppy and Shen._

_Huo spoke-_

"_Sorry I'm a little late, I nearly tripped halfway up the stairs leading up to your room- why does this building have so many of them?"_

"_I think it's meant to say that the owners of this tower are like big and all powerful with royalty. Personally I don't like see why we need to have so many but it's what the ancestors decided"_

"_They must have been like, frogs or something cos you gotta bounce to get up them quick."_

"_Yeah-" Shen laughed and so did Huo. Ying smiled at the two little animal joking with each other._

_The pair eat some breakfast and then after much urging from an impatient Shen, Huo with the help of Ying carried up a large canvas, while Shen led the two cradling a small object wrapped in a cloth in his wings, surprising the two at how fast the little peacock travelled up the stairs despite his weakened muscles and asthmatic lungs. _

_Finally they reached the last flight, guarded by two wolves. Ying put down her end of the canvas and stepped up to the wolves, asking about the king and queen's activities. They conversed for a while, and eventually the guards nodded and parted their crossed axes, allowing the group access._

"_Now," Ying turned to Shen who was anxiously stepping from one foot to the other in a little tap-dance of excitement, his wide eyes looking from her to the room and back- " I will go and prepare your baba and mama for your invention. Can you wait here while I do that?"_

"_Yes," Said the jittery peacock. The poor thing was dying to show his parents his newest invention and make them proud of him. Fortunately he was patient enough to wait. Ying turned and trundled into the throne room._

_Sat in a gold gigantic throne with its ornate back designed like an extended peacock's feather train with a smaller but just as vividly decorated throne next to its seat, were the King and Queen of Gongmen City. The King turned his sapphire head to look at Ying._

"_Ah- Soothsayer Ying- good morning to you."  
"And likewise to yourself, your highness." The goat bowed low._

"_I don't recall having scheduled a meeting with you."_

"_You did not, my king, but this is a special occasion. It involves your son."_

_At the mention of his son, Qiang Shi Mo's quills dropped slightly. His cheerful expression remained somewhat intact, but his voice was what betrayed him, his voice reduced in volume and vigour as he responded with much less enthusiasm than before._

"_Oh.- Yes, yes of course. We will be-" He looked at Queen Ye Hua as if to encourage her to reflect his statement and' happiness' mood, which she did- "very happy to see our own son again. My gosh, it has been, so long since I have seen him."_

"_Half a year, if I seem to recall." Ying chimed in._

"_Yes, yes." Ye Hua spoke with some haste waving a wing as if to brush aside the unnecessary detail.-"Will he come in?"_

"_It will be his pleasure to do so." Ying kept her smile and turned to the stairs to see Shen's eager face peeking past the guard's legs. "Shen? You may come in."_

_Shen gasped in joy, then looked downstairs at Huo._

"_That's- oh that's brilliant- uhm- Nana, could you help Huo, urm, carry…"_

"_We'll do it." The two wolf guards politely offered._

"_Thank you." Said Ying._

_Shen walked up the last two steps and let the two wolf guards put down their axes and walk past him. They came up shortly carrying the canvas, which was covered with a white cloth, Huo in the middle under the canvas 'helping' them lead it into the centre of the chamber. Ying took out a small stand for the canvas to be placed on, and Shen asked if he could borrow a small stall for his small object to be placed on. The guards returned with one and promptly left again._

"_Oh joy," Qiang whispered with a slight exhaustion to his voice. "Another painting."_

"_Qiang!" Ye Hua whispered fiercely at her husband- "At least pretend to appreciate his work. He is our heir and legacy after all."_

"_Although not the ideal one."_

"_Qiang…"_

_The guards took their leave, and Shen joined Huo in front of the throne._

_Shen was beaming, but he kept control of himself as he and Huo bowed low in front of the king and queen. He spoke as he rose._

"_Mama, Baba, I am here to show you a wonderful new invention that will change the world forever!"_

_Ye Hua parted her beak and widened her eyes in a poorly acted expression of intrigue. Qiang raised an eyebrow at this bold statement._

"_Very well- show us." Qiang eventually spoke, his voice devoid of anticipation._

"_With pleasure." Shen gestured to the board."Huo?"_

_Huo nodded and pulled the cover off, revealing a rather well-drawn step by step diagram._

_Shen lead the presentation with a bamboo stick, pointing to each step after giving a very thorough explanation of each stage. His parents watched, their expressions were unreadable, though Ying couldn't help but detect a bit of concern, and uncertainty within Qiang's eyes._

_Huo stood by patiently, occasionally wagging his tail whenever Shen gave credit to his 'best friend' for helping him with the occasional flaw of the plan and getting him the materials to help build the miniature model. Ying watched with an amused smile on her features, occasionally glancing at the king and queen for their reaction as they processed the excited ten year-old's ramblings._

"…_And, so, I think the fireworks can help us protect the city, by making them bigger and using more and more gunpowder as well as something large and strong enough to keep the fire-ball in and fire it from." Shen concluded. He walked over to the object on the stool and grasped the cloth._

_This was it, Shen thought inside._

"_And, without further ado, I give you, the super powered boom-boom fire-work launcher!"_

_With a dramatic flourish to accompany his speech, Shen drew the cloth off the model and Qiang and Ye Hua bent forward on their thrones to further examine the model._

_Huo added_

"_I call it a 'cannon.'_

"_Huo!" Shen whined at the pup, then waved it off and looked up expectantly at his parents._

"_So, what do you think?"_

_There was a deathly silence in the chamber. _

_Ying decided to break it. She brought her hooves together and clapped them together._

"_Well well, what a surprise, and such a brilliant idea with a noble intention." She turned to the parents expectantly, her eyes encouraging them to answer._

"_My queen, what do you think of your son's invention?"_

_Upon being asked this, Ye Hua seemed to be at a loss for words._

_She stuttered for a bit, then finished with a simple- "It was very good."_

_Shen smiled and nodded. Any praise however big or small from any one other than Ying and Huo would do for him, just as long as it was praise. He looked expectantly at his father, who was still expressionless._

"_Baba?"_

_Anticipation gripped the air tighter than the robe to Shen's chest from the sweat he had produced from the nervousness and adrenaline in his veins. He had put every hope and expectation for his father's approval._

_Finally he spoke, and his voice shattered the silence, and Shen's happiness in a split-second._

"_What is this monstrosity?"_

_Shen's shoulders dropped. His eyes were wide with shock as Qiang continued_

"_You would turn our ancestors creation that were designed to signify peace and cheer in times of celebration in our city, into a weapon?"_

"_Baba, I.."_

"_You have seen the potential, the raw damage that fireworks can cause in that accident when you were a child, and you want to see that done to other people, to use what could bring colour and joy to our city to cause pain and untold suffering to innocent lives."_

"_It would only be used on our enemies…" Shen sniffled. He was shaking with fear- "I wanted to, -to protect our city- I wanted to help you-"_

"_ENOUGH!" Qiang roared, causing his son to cower and everyone in the room to visibly flinch. Only when Qiang was furious would he raise his voice to such a level._

"_How dare you try to use our fireworks as a means to butcher people. The untold destruction that- that thing could cause is not worth the investment, not even worth the attention or time to give to such a horrific creation."_

_Shen whimpered as Qiang sat up from his throne, strode forward and picked up the model, which consisted of a neatly carved out bamboo tube covered and painted in black powder with ruddy stone wheels and one of Shen's toy dragons on top. He lifted it into the air and smashed it down to the floor, breaking it into tiny pieces. His mother looked on, her face a look of disapproval. Huo cowered back from where the cannon shattered, giving an involuntary yelp in the process._

_Shen began to cry. He tried to reach for his father's gown._

"_Baba, I'm sorry I-"_

_Qiang drew up his wing and smacked Shen with the back of it so hard across the face it knocked him off his feet and on to the ground._

_Ying had had enough._

"_Your highness, please!"_

_She rushed over to the whimpering prince's side, who was shielding his face in fear. She glared up at him_

"_He is frail! You could have killed him!"_

_Qiang pointed to the stairs._

"_Get him out of my sight! And make sure he never goes near the fireworks again for a whole year!"_

"_NOOoo!" Shen mewled from under his wing._

"_SILENCE!" Qiang growled at the peachick._

"_Your highness, please," Ying looked with pity in her eyes- "He was only trying to impress you- he rarely ever sees you and his mum- and he thinks the world of you. Everyday for the past six months he has done nothing but fuss over how great and inspiring you two are to him and how he would do anything to spend time with you two, and this is how you reward him?"_

"_Soothsayer." Qiang looked darkly at the goat, addressing her by title only.-"If you had not encouraged him to continue with his, obsessive hobbies, we would not be having this discussion."_

"_He is young and fool-hardy, but wants to exercise his creative mind. Surely you would take that as a blessing? He is a gifted child who's talents are beyond that of his age."_

"_He is unnatural." Qiang huffed and looked down on the peacock child. "Such a frail and weak person, a deathly white one at that is the breeding ground for evil creations to spew forth!"_

_This only caused Shen to cry louder and wail. Ying brought him closer to her chest._

"_How dare you say that about your own son!"_

"_I had rather he had not been born in the first place. And this is to be our heir! I'd expect more from a blind idiot farmer oxe." Qiang dismissed with a shake of his head._

_He bent down low to Ying's face._

"_Now** get him out of my sight.**"_

_Ying scowled vehemently at the king, before lifting the peacock prince to his feet and carrying him away from his father and to the steps. Huo followed shortly after, his short fluffy tail between his legs._

"_Your parents will be hearing about this as well, young dog." Qiang spoke with authority._

_And with that, Shen was carried out of the throne room and back to his bedroom to cry himself to sleep for the next five days._

* * *

Fire. Light. Pain.

He was caught in an explosion so fierce his lungs were filled with soot and his eyes burned with tears.

He found it hard to hold on. Another flash took him away from the inferno.

* * *

_Huo waited patiently with the peafowl group who had sat down on the seats of the archery range._

_It was usually occupied by the guards, but under authority of the young prince, now thirteen years old, it was cleared out. Guards still waited outside, but were tipped not to reveal anything about the activities of the peacock group inside._

_A year was not enough for Shen to be away from fireworks, and under the cover of darkness, the prince and wolf would find new ways to sneak into the laboratory to read the peacock's design plans, or even steal some chemicals for Shen to study back in his room. Huo would risk his tail time and time again to make sure Shen didn't get into too much trouble, even going as far as to take the blame for himself when they were caught or questioned about Shen's disobedient activities._

_Eventually the ban was lifted, and much to Ying's chagrin Shen was locking himself back in the labs to revise and create new prototypes for the 'weapon of tomorrow'. Both Ying and Huo, having known Shen from when he was a child were naturally concerned for his social standing. Sure he was the prince of Gongmen City and was destined to be its ruler, but figures of royalty were meant to gain favour from both nobles and common folk alike in order to garner support for their causes when they eventually ascend to power over the courts and councils. For Shen this could not be more important for him than anything else at this given time._

_But like any other child, Shen's concerns were always misplaced. Even after he was made aware of what it meant to be a true prince, he still focused on his secret construction of his cannons_

_And when he was forced to make friends with other peafowl, he became focused on only wanting to please one certain peahen within his select group of acquaintances._

_Shen had met his first though not his only crush, a dotty peahen named Shi Xing, a very attractive and fashionable bird, the daughter of a noble man who acted just as her parents did, uptight and a socialite, flirtatious only to those she considered worth her time. Curiously her fussiness seemed to dissipate when she was around male peafowl who were of higher standing or were part of the royal family. Which, considering she was a noble, happened a lot._

_Huo and Ying both agreed on one thing. Being an easy girl, Shi was not worth Shen's time; she did not deserve him. But Shen, given his passionate and obsessive nature was unable to pull himself away from his romantic thoughts of her, nor did he have the inclination to. One cheeky wink, a brief smile, or a flirty comment and Shen would be smitten for days._

_Huo would find himself gagging everytime Shen brought her up in conversations, to the point where he had to leave and find something else to do, leaving the infatuated peacock to daydream about her for the rest of the day._

_Shen would always ignore the attentions of lesser or common peahen, considering them beneath him and believing that Shi and only Shi was the one meant for him. Her approval seemed to override that of his own parents in terms of priority and Shen would toil and strain himself to prove himself for Shi's affection. So single-minded would he be in his pursuit of Shi's heart that being proved a fool was often a regular occurrence when he tried too hard or if Shi was in no way interested in him at all._

_This would of course infuriate the peacock prince, given his impressive intellect and talent in the arts as a dancer, scholar, artist, musician and protégé of the Kung Fu Master Flying Rhino, whose father trained Shen's parents and so agreed to honour his father and tradition by ensuring the heir of the peacock royal family could defend himself. He was a multi-talented individual despite his apparent and hidden weaknesses and was damn proud of it. If only the love of his life could see him the same way._

_Huo licked his lips, an involuntary gesture that all canines had. When Shen was away, he had to put up with listening to those birds squawking and gossiping next to him, going on and on about Shen, himself and the latest attractive gown or dress in the merchant's square that they were all secretly racing each other to purchase thanks to their daddies spoiling them to death._

_Finally he saw a familiar white shape make his way through the side entrance of the range, dragging behind him by rope a medium sized 'cannon', this time shaped like a dragon and on a small but sturdy wooden cart on wheels._

_Huo stood up with concern on his face. He had dragged that thing all the way from the palace inventory to here. He should have asked me for help, he thought to himelf. But then he reminded himself- Of course, trying to impress the peahen. Again._

_Shen had grown taller and bigger in the past three years, but was still smaller than the average male peahen. His train sported a few more quills with small feathers on the back, and his beak was beginning to become more pointed and angular. His head feathers was also more noticeable and had more feathers, giving him an impressive head set._

_He shook his head and ran up to the peacock trying to hide the effort on his face, trying to mask it with a face of contentment and ease._

'_Man I wish someone would just kill that peahen-Shen's killin himself just trying to small-talk with her' he thought as he reached._

_Shen looked up at Huo as he approached him. Huo knew that from the look in his eye, he did not want to look like he needed help, and if Huo still could not hold the burning question to ask if Shen did need help, he had to change his sentence from 'do you need help' to 'You good?' Apparently this was meant to show that Shen and Huo were 'cool'_

_Whatever the heck that meant._

_So Huo opened up with one of his rehearsed lines as he reached Shen_

"_You good?"_

_Shen nodded, then glanced behind him._

"_I may need you to set up one of those hay targets over there, could you do that?"_

_Huo nodded. "Sure."_

_Shen nodded his thanks and with a final heave reached the spot where archers would usually aim and fire their bows. He let go of the rope, waddled awkwardly around the cannon and pushed the small barrel so it pointed where Huo was placing down the haystack target, which had a painted white and red striped target._

_He turned to the peafowl crowd and cleared his throat. After a few excuse me' s and can I have your attention please's, the peafowl crowd turned their eyes to him. Shen composed himself; he was talking to some peafowl who were much older than him. His confidence levels seemed to magically shoot up when his eyes and Shi Xing's eyes locked._

"_Good Afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for coming on such short notice." He spoke in a clipped and clear accent, one practiced and inflected in dialogue by all the royals in Gongmen Palace._

"_I am here to present to you something that my parents wouldn't allow me to build in my youth, for it is a weapon so powerful, so devastating, that it will change the way we peacocks shall fight our enemies forever." He finished with a dramatic flourish._

"_Oh- what is that ugly thing- a commoners chimney stuck on wheels." A rather plump peahen quipped, which had the group in titters._

_Shen smiled patiently._

"_Oh my darling Duan', you will find yourself wishing it was such a thing after you witness this things destructive power." He put a foot forward and flexed his feather fist._

"_It certainly does look destructive,- kind of like those special sewage pipes the servants put in elephant toilets!" An older peacock guffawed with the others after finishing his sentence._

"_I'll certainly be using this to shoot feculence at you my friend, don't you worry." Shen muttered under his breath._

"_Come now," One proud yet soft spoke out above the crowd- "Shen may have something rather interesting to show us. Let us give him a chance." _

_Shen looked to Shi Xing who had just spoken, her features were that of gentle amusement and a coy look in her eye, or did she always pull that face when Shen was around. He could not tell, or care, to him she was always a fair maiden._

"_Thank you Shi, for your patience." He turned to the cannon, and then back at the crowd, twiddling two feathers together awkwardly._

"_Umm.. perhaps, you could possibly relocate yourselves to either side of my creation," he timidly asked. When the group looked at each other in confusion, Shen quickly elaborated_

"_Just so that you may see the weapon in full effect." _

_With little fuss and more giggles as the peahens gossiped, the peacock's made their way from the rack of seats they were sat on and made their way onto the field. _

_Shi Xing was the furthest down the line to the left of the cannon, standing next to the older peacock who made the sewage pipe joke about Shen's cannon._

_Shen looked at Shi, who giggled slightly and looked away bashfully. Shen chuckled awkwardly, his head fans flaring up slightly._

_From the end of the range, Huo rolled his eyes- _

"_Oh puh-lease!"_

_Shen shook his head and slicked by his growing dorsal feathers, keeping his feather train under control._

"_Now, ladies and gentleman, when my associate is finished preparing the target, I will prepare the weapon."_

_He grabbed two jagged rocks from within his robes pockets and held them above the fuse. He paused for dramatic effect._

"_You may want to close your ears."_

_Some of the peahen including Shi did so. The others and the males simply stood by, indifferent._

_Shen looked at Huo, who had finished running up to him, standing next to the cannon._

_Then with no further delay, Shen bashed the jagged rocks together with all his might._

_Sparks fell onto the dry fuse._

_There was a short sizzling sound as the fuse was ignited and burned itself away._

_Then it fired._

_Shen used small but explosive fireworks for ammunition. The fuses in the rockets had been removed so that they all wouldn't blow up the cannon when it fired. The rockets screamed out of the barrel the same way fireworks would normally work and obliterated the target with a loud explosion. _

_Hay littered everywhere and nearly everyone fell to the ground._

_Shen was whooping in laughter. Huo was trying to pat out a stubborn flame on top of his growing mane and the other peafowl standing or sitting were stunned from what had just happened._

_The after effect of the explosion echoed its echo and died its last._

_Then the majority of the group of peafowl hustled around the peacock prince, clambering and asking too many questions for the prince to answer at once_

"_How did you do that?"_

"_How long did it take for you to make that?"_

"_Why can't I hear anything?"_

_Shen chuckled and gestured to the cannon as he spoke._

"_This is what I call the prototype cannon. The weapon of the future, that will revolutionise how we fight our enemies."_

"_Do your parents know about this."  
Shen cocked his head_

"_Mmm-not necessarily. They do not quite appreciate my ideas, but they will. Until then I felt it was more fun to do this while your parents are, unaware, shall we say?"_

"_Oooooh" This gained approval from the peahen and a few chuckles from the other peacocks. Shen smiled smugly and seemed to glow with pride. Huo snorted. That peacock could light up the whole court with his smile. And yeah, he may be letting all these compliments from his 'friends' massage his ego, but at least he was nicer to be around when he was happy._

"_Lets shoot another one!" Duan suggested_

_Shen's eyes widened with surprise._

"_Well, I believe I have enough small rockets for one more shot- eh Huo? Could you fetch that bundle of black rope over there- I believe it is my fuse. And set up a new target while you are heading back as well if you please."_

"_Of course, Lord Shen." Huo ran on all fours to the fuse, picked it up, went over to the target stand, and dragged it through the debris to where the first one was. He was on his way back when he saw something weird from the corner of his eye._

_He looked, and whispered to himself._

"_Oh no."_

_Shi Xing was locking beaks with the older male peacock. Very passionately. What was worse was that they were in full swing, probably meaning that Shi wasn't there with Shen asking him any questions about his invention. She had ignored him completely._

_Huo looked at Shen and his heart sank._

_Shen had seen Shi, and his face was, well it showed many things. Shocked, distraught, betrayal._

_It seemed to thunder up and crease into a snarl that crinkled his face, highlighting his stress lines on his cheeks and eyebrows even at the age of thirteen. Furious. _

_And then it passed._

_As quickly as Huo had seen it appear on his face, it just vanished. His eyes were at a rather normal level. His beak was closed, his expression neutral. Not serene or accepting. But neutral._

_Huo knew Shen never let go of things he had affection for easily. Unlike Shi, Shen was not that shallow._

_Something was very wrong._

_Huo was suddenly feeling reluctant about bringing the fuse back to Shen's cannon. One possible scenario painted itself in his head._

'_No, no, he wouldn't even do such a thing. He couldn't….could he?'_

_Huo shook it off as Shen lifted his head and turned it in his direction._

"_Huo?" His voice was disturbingly clear of stress, as if it had been unnaturally cut out- "The fuse, if you please?"_

_Huo nodded and bounded over to Shen, used one paw to dig up the remains of the previous fuse and slid it carefully into the open port. He put in the rockets and went back to Shen's side._

"_Ooh goody." A taller skinnier but more fancily dressed peahen bounced on her toes and clenched her feathers together, before turning to walk back to Shi and the male peacock, who were still locked in a passionate tongue duel._

"_Shi, Jiao, do pay attention to Shen's remarkable invention- you are sure to miss it!"_

_Jiao the mentioned male peacock broke from the kiss and raised an mocking eyebrow in Shen's direction._

"_Its not as entertaining as I'd thought it would be," Jiao carelessly spoke,_

"_Yes- yes- I fully agree!" Shi voiced her opinion, though Huo knew it was false- "It is rather dull."_

_Jiao looked back at Shi in his wings. _

"_There are other ways to show a young lady like yourself a good time, you know. Let's leave this loser and find a show to watch or have something fancy to eat, hmm?" Jiao spoke with a rather suggestive and saucy tone in his voice. Shi simply giggled._

"_Oh yes- perhaps we should."_

_The couple began to turn and walk to one of the exits._

_Huo turned to Shen, who was bristling with, he didn't want to know._

_Shen raised his shaking arms and struck them above the fuse. Once again sparks cascaded onto the fuse and it was lit. The fizzling began. And the wait_

_Shen seemed patient as the fuse neared its end. He looked up at the target the small missiles were intended for. _

_The fuse was half-way burnt out._

_Huo saw Shen's eyes watch Shi and Jiao near the exit._

_Three quarters._

"_You want a show?" Shen whispered under his breath so venomously that only Huo right next to him could hear it. –"I'll give you a show."_

_Huo was too slow, too stuck in his own horror, realisation and denial as Shen lurched forward, pulled the back of the cannon so that barrel was pointing to the left. The small struts keeping the cannon straight fell off, causing the barrel to slump downwards, but Shen didn't seem to care or notice. The cannon was aimed right at the feet of-_

"_SHEN NO!" Huo screamed , his pre-pubescent voice ending his yell in a squeal._

_The cannon went off the moment Huo touched Shen to try and pull him away._

_Too late._

* * *

_Shen sat in the cell. Staring disparately at the wall._

_There was the creak of metal hinges on a large door as someone entered the prison. The guard, a warthog finished reading his scroll and pushed himself off the seat._

_Shen stood from the bench and walked to the barred door._

_There was whispering, hushed, one person angrily chatting, the other slower, more deliberate._

_Shen could only make out a few words;_

"…_in a state of shock…..."_

"…_.may be some time before s her legs can recover again…"_

" …_.Won't go out of his room anymore…._

" …_.arents very upset…"_

"…_.switches won't be enough for what they have in mind…"_

"…_lucky it only landed a few feet away…._

"…_.not enough powder to go all the way…_

"…_innocent…"_

"…_.murder….."_

"…_.issues….."_

"…_has had problems from the start…."_

"…_difficult child…."_

"… _suffering because…."_

_Those whispers would stay with Shen's mind for a good deal of his life._

_He heard the muffled chinking of coins inside a leather bag. Someone was paying for his release. Shen chuffed. He was the prince of Gongmen, he didn't deserve to be locked up. That bully and lying harlot deserved…_

_He only meant to scare them…right?_

_Barely in his teens. And he has nearly killed two people all ready._

_The clip-clop of porcine hooves became louder and a large stout and shadowy form blocked the candlelight in front of the barred door._

"_You're a lucky kid, Prince Shen. Some people would hang for what you tried to do today." The growling voice of the warthog guard rumbled through the princes body. There was the jangle of giant keys and the sound of the door unlocking. Blinking ruby red eyes to clear his vision, Shen stepped out of the cell and into the light._

_He paced down the dark corridor and saw the Soothsayer waiting for him in front of the desk where the warthog had been reading._

_He was shocked. Relief and familiarity overflowed and he stepped eagerly towards her._

"_Nana-" _

_She walked straight past him, now having to use a cane due to old pains in her legs and drew a large bag of coins from her bag and pushed it into the guard's hands._

"_Here is another five thousand for your time and consideration."_

"_Hmm." The warthog made a noise of approval, opening the bag to start counting the money, then waved a hoof to the door._

"_You can go."_

_The soothsayer hobbled off, with Shen tiptoeing behind._

_The jail guard called after them;_

"_Your nana sure loves you to come all the way done here and pull yer feathery hide out of jail at this time of night. You should consider yourself very very fortunate, prince"_

_They both said nothing as they reached the doorway._

_She handed him a large black cloak and put another on herself to cover her features. Shen did likewise as they entered the streets of Gongmen and made their way stealthily back to the palace in the dead of the night, trying to avoid the gazes of the odd midnight stroller._

_When they reached the courtyard, the soothsayer stopped and turned to Shen. They both stood alone in the grounds. It was midnight and the moon and stars were high up in the sky, illuminating the entire palace in dim chalk white light._

_She removed her cloak and then took off his with care as though she was helping him undress as a child._

_Shen flinched, fearing fierce retributive punishment; a smack to the face, a dual pronged switch, bed without blankets._

_But instead the Soothsayer looked at him with sad eyes, her bottom jaw quivering every now and then._

_Shen was the first to speak._

"_Am," he swallowed- "Am I a monster, Nana?"_

_Nana sobbed, her eyes flowed with tears and she turned and walked away without a word, leaving the young peacock prince without an answer, alone in the eerily moonlit night._

Shen fell back and hit his head hard on the front of his deck. His silver robe was in tatters and the ship pitched forward as it was rocked by the explosion. He rolled forward, past the ravaged cannon and landed hard on the forward aft section of the boat.

**A/N: I have returned! The chapter and the next chapter will be key moments of Shen's life flashing before his eyes as his boat is hit by his own cannonball.**

**As you can see I've dramatically shifted focus abruptly from Tai Lung to Shen. Tai Lung may be more badass, but Shen is the most interesting.**

**I know some of these scenarios may be clichéd and be somewhat familiar to the other Shen fics for when he was a kid on this site, but I just sat down, imagined it, thought it was good and wrote. I thought pain and frustration would be prevalent forces in Shen's life as it leads up to the day he leads the wolf pack to the panda village. Hope you liked- **

**PLEASE R&R! Your reviews keep me motivated to writing this drabble. **


	5. Shen vs Po Part 1: Flashbacks 2

**A/N: Boom! Back again! - second part of Shen's past revealed in flashbacks and fight with Po!**

"_Fifty one, fifty two, fifty three…."_

"_Shen?" Huo knocked on the door of the training hall._

"_You in there buddy?"_

" _sixty eight, sixty nine, seventy, come on, blast you!- seventy-one…"_

_Huo pushed open the door as he entered the training hall, where various exercise equipment were set up. There were complex rope pulleys and thick bamboo sticks with stone weights attached to them._

_Tall metal structures with chains attached to them were in the center of the hall for the more acrobatic of trainers. _

_Huo's eyes were drawn to the peacock standing on two bars, with his feathers, upside down, in slacks and a tight robe with its sleeves cut off, doing handstand push-ups._

_Huo nodded his head in admiration. Shen had put everything into his training and rehabilitation for his heinous actions back when they were tweens. He didn't see his parents as much, but his relationship with his Nana had recovered a great deal and Huo had chosen to introduce Shen to his fellow pack mates, which Shen got along with famously. They were roughhousers, but Shen would outmanuever them and use them to practice with and even teach a few skills of kung fu to the pack, who were more than happy to learn. They in turn would teach him the fighting moves that the military defense force would use to subdue rioters and troublemakers, which Shen too was keen to learn. He had their support and they had his favour. Huo somehow knew that Shen would have more friends outside of his species than from within. He was different, misunderstood, and special, and crazy or no crazy, Huo would stick by Shen even when all seemed lost. _

_He was his friend after all._

"_There you are!" Huo bounded over to Shen, who was still doing his push-ups._

"_Ah- Huo you nearly made me lose concentration!" Shen wobbled a bit as he completed his ninetieth lift, standing with his wings fully extended._

"_You almost finished?" Huo leaned against a barrel with his arms crossed._

"_Yes yes, hold on-" Shen bent his arms and lowered himself down, and back up again ten more times._

_On the final push, Shen shoved himself off the stand, flipping through the air, train streaking behind him like the tail of a dragon and landed on his feet with one wing touching the ground in front._

_Huo shook his head._

"_Showoff- come on lightweight, we need to get you ready for the festival!"_

"_My friend Huo, what you just witnessed there was a monumental achievement in my physical prowess."_

_He threw his wings forward, showing lithe and well-developed muscle through his feathers. Huo grabbed one of his wings and squeezed, feeling a good deal of strong resistance. Indeed the peacock prince had gotten stronger. While there were no obvious signs of improvement to his small and skinny frame, Shen had developed a toned and shapely body, that give Shen surprising strength and agility despite his weakened and sickly body, poor immune system and problematic lungs._

"_I'm going to display to her today, Huo."_

"_What?"Huo looked up at Shen and let go, who had a soft but determined look in his eyes._

"_Li Yan."_

_Huo smiled. _

"_Really- I mean- you're gonna do it? Show her your train?"_

"_It has taken some time for me to pluck up the courage," Shen walked to the washroom, Huo trailing behind him, careful not to step on the princes fan as he did.- "But I think I can do it."_

_Huo wagged his tail and raised his arms._

"_That's awesome! And you know something?" Huo asked as Shen walked behind the screen doors to change- "I think she's gonna like it!"_

"_I have a good feeling about this as well." Shen called back as he stepped into his bath, which was a massive shallow bowl with water poured in and changed frequently. The bowl was heated by underground furnaces under the floor and placed at each 'corner of the bowl.' "She is like no other woman I have ever met. She understands me, and is patient with me like Nana. I feel whole with her."_

_Huo scratched his head as he thought back to the times Shen and Li had been together. Li was a mute swan, a reserved but kind hearted and mature minded bird despite her age who Shen had taken a liking to when she and her family were touring Gongmen City. They had bumped into each other, quite literally in a merchants square. When they eventually locked eyes, her jasmine yellow eyes meeting with his striking crimson pupils, something seemed to spark between them. The pair would conveniently keep meeting up with each other with their respective groups, and gradually without their groups, and spending more time together alone. Like Shi and the other peahen Shen had tried to woo with no avail, Li was of royal blood, but was different in so many ways, including her sense of morality. Li was patient and understanding towards Shen's eccentricities, and was a woman who approached problems they encountered with a far more senior attitude than she let on as well as a strong will to back it up. Shen admired that in a woman, even daresay found it attractive. Li would find Shen's sarcastic quips and at times cynical sense of humor amusing. She would draw the line when he mocked the servants and those less well off, saying that it was not becoming of a prince to make his insubordinates, well, feel like insubordinates. Huo couldn't help but feel that being with Li made Shen, nicer. Of course the peacock would have hated to have heard that said about him- he had enough insecurities about his masculinity enough as it was._

"_And I'm not as fun to be around- You break my heart Shen." Huo mocked, making yet another joke about their close friendship._

"_Oh do shut up."_

_Shen emerged from behind the screen eventually with a silk green robe with a dragon embroidered on its left shoulder._

_Huo resumed the conversation_

"_I'm just saying, you're with her practically everyday- you two are freakin joined at the hip!"_

"_And soon, it may well be that way."_

"_Huh?"_

_Shen turned to Huo as they walked to the entrance hall where hundreds of servants were bustling around the room, carrying pots of soup, trays of food, sashes and ribbons for decorations, step ladders and clothes for the tables laid outside in the courtyard._

_Many were crowded around Qiang and Le Hua, fussing and ironing out every crease with their hands and polishing every item of jewellery on their flamboyant gowns and head-dresses. Some of the servants waiting anxiously for Shen and Huo ran up to them, rubbing perfumed soaps on them and dragging combs though the twos feathers and fur, much to the annoyance of Huo._

"_Oh stop fussing, Huo." Shen chided the teenage wolf as he growled at a rabbit with a tweezer trying to pluck out odd strands of hair from his eyelids- "Everyone must look presentable for the festival of the anniversary of my parents coronation."_

"_Nhuh!" Huo grunted with discomfort as one eyelash was pinged out of one of his eyebrows- "What is with you peacocks and your appearance? Do you always have to look pretty just to get through every day of the week. If not the whole year!"_

"_My friend, appearance is how we peafowl survive. Fanciful appearances are bound to gain you favour in the animal kingdom. It is our way of life to judge people by their appearances, as it shows us their commitment to taking care of themselves."_

_Huo groaned quietly to himself._

"_Oh, so you made friends with me and my pack cos you liked us by our good looks? Did you bond with Nana cos she was pretty? You got the hots for Li cos she happened to dress right on the day you two first met." _

"_Wh- What- no of course not!"_

" _Ha ha ha!" Huo laughed, startling a sheep who was fitting him into a robe and nearly ripping it._

"_Its ok Shen I'm just joshin you. Hey buddy." He put a hand on Shen shoulder._

"_You're gonna do great. You're a much better person than you were five years ago and she can't refuse a prince like you."_

_Shen smiled_

"_Thank you Huo. Is your pack here as well? I hope that favour I pulled was able to get them some quality seats."_

"_Ah I heard they're on one of the side tables, though they'll probably only be getting the left overs."_

_Shen was indignant._

"_Really? After all that- your pack does not deserve this. I shall see to it that-"_

"_Shen its ok. If anything they're just happy to even be here. You've done my pack an honour by allowing them to attend a royal event like this."_

_Shen nodded._

"_We'll follow you everywhere Shen and defend you to our last breath. You've shown the pack that you're more than just some trumped up peacock prince. You're someone they'll die for."_

"_Huo…."_

"_Honest truth." Huo put his hands up, eyebrows raised, now fully dressed in a nobleman's robe tailored especially for him. "Our loyalty is our honour and in our blood. They, and I, will serve you until the end."_

"_That's, good to know." Shen chose what he thought were the right words. Huo nodded and smiled back._

"_Let us go meet our parents!" Shen said with a flourish, shaking off the servants, with Huo trying to shake off a sewing string on his foot in pursuit._

_He approached his parents, who looked down upon him._

"_Baba, Mama." Shen said politely, giving them a brief hug._

"_Hello son," Qiang spoke with a moderated tone, deep and authoritative- "You look rather presentable."_

"_Your canine friend would fool the rest of the royals into thinking he was a noble." Le Hua remarked at Huo. Huo bowed politely to hide his grimace at the degrading comment._

_Shen straightened up and put a wing to his chest. _

"_Anything to show my and his appreciation for the day you and Baba became fine rulers of this glorious city." He spoke in a well-rehearsed line. His true feelings for his parents were still up for questioning._

_Qiang nodded, unfazed by Shen's supposed attempt to suck up to him._

"_And I take it you aren't trying to make more of those infernal cannons of yours, I hope?"_

"_Why," Shen shook his head- "I wouldn't dream of pursuing such a trivial matter, not since my early adolescence."_

_Qiang nodded and looked the palace doors expectantly, obviously not wanting to prolong the conversation with his estranged son any longer._

"_Good."_

_He turned to Le Hua._

"_What is going on, it is long past dusk. Why aren't the doors opening and the music playing."_

"_A servant told me they still have a few more guests yet to arrive."_

_Qiang sighed with fatigue and put a wing to his brow._

"_Why does this have to be so laborious- Next to the discovery of fireworks, this event was supposed to be the most hallowed of the year and still our guests take their time to show up! I swear this kingship will be the death of me one day."_

"_If only they truly appreciated how much peace we have brought to this city," Shen spoke up, -"They would be nowhere near as advanced or significant a landmark of China if it weren't for our mastery of protecting and maintaining our city."_

_Qiang glanced back at Shen with a look as if he had just emitted a disgusting smell._

"_Yes, indeed." He dismissed before turning back to his Queen._

_Huo saw Shen's beak clench slightly from the lack of attention his father gave to his sincere compliment, but he just blinked and stroked his robes with his feathers, feigning disinterest._

_Huo grimaced. He knew fully well the strained and at times malnourished state of Shen's relationship with his folks. The whole thing was infuriating to see. At least his parents ate three square meals a day with him before they split up over money problems._

_Suddenly trumpets were heard sounding outside the doors._

"_Ah finally." Qiang straightened and smoothed back his feather crest- "Showtime."_

_Side by side, Qiang and Le Hua walked to the palace doors as it was opened for them by the guards standing either side, followed from behind by a caravan of antelope guards. Shen ushered over Huo and the pair took their place behind the caravan and walked out, followed by their own group of guards as the messenger announced the arrival of the royal family._

"_And accompanying them, Prince Shen and Huo Dun!"_

_The crowd turned and bowed to them as Shen walked with his wings tucked in his robes, an air of pride and authority around him. Huo held his head high as much as his hunched neck would allow._

_They took their seats next to the king and queen and watched some of the performers juggle and fool around, earning some laughs here and there. And then came the kung fu masters._

_Oogway performed his incredible pattern, flowing and kicking , soaring through the air and landing so hard on his staff on his foot- which did not shatter miraculously- it caused a shockwave of dust that splashed over everyone, but dissipated fortunately before it could ruin any of the food._

_Other masters came up and performed their acts as well. Shen was particularly amused by the rooster who pranced about like a jokester, before shattering four stone obelisks into millions of little pieces with just his wingtips at the same time. There were a few giggles when he turned and winked at a few peahens._

"_Whoa- did you see that- he was like- fwaa –shuu- bataa!" Huo overexcitedly moved his hands and made his own sound effects as he commented on a red panda deflect arrows shot at him from all angles by a group of uncertain looking archers, firing volleys at the master while trying to avoid hitting him at the same time. The panda deflected them all without losing a beat._

_Shen shook his head and smirked with humor at his entranced friend._

"_He looks like he's enjoying the show."_

_A female voice spoke to his right and Shen looked to see a tall, thin necked figure sat next to him shrouded in a black cloth._

"_Who-" His question was answered as thin feather hands came up and drew the hood, back, revealing a snub nosed beak and jasmine coloured eyes on a clear white head that smiled at him._

"_Hello Shen." Li Yan spoke._

"_Li!" Shen spoke._

_The two birds jostled around, unsure which side they wanted to hug, before awkwardly pulling themselves together with Li laughing sweetly as they connected. Shen's quills raised as he could feel her heartbeat against his and they pulled apart. _

_Shen had to look up at Li from where he was sat, due the height differences and her neck length being longer than his. But he didn't mind._

"_I thought you'd never come."_

"_You did invite me, Sheshey."_

"_Of-of course I did," blustered the peacock- "I'm just, glad to see you here. Where are your parents?"_

_Li craned her long graceful neck sideways, her faint yellow eyes looking at the elephants master perfecting a yoga stance by standing on the tip of his trunk which was followed shortly by a massive round of applause._

"_They're, busy. Making preparations."_

"_For what?" Shen asked._

_Li looked down._

"_It's a little complicated." She looked back up- "Its nothing to worry about now, its just.."_

"_Yes?" Shen inquired._

"_There's something I need to talk to you about. I didn't know if any later would be a better time. Maybe after we've eaten we can, separate ourselves from the group." She asked with a soft but clear voice._

_Shen considered this, nodded and replied back._

"_Of course. Whatever you need."_

_Li smiled, her soft orange bill curving up pristinely as she did. Shen couldn't help but smile too._

_They didn't seem to notice that they were locked in each others gaze for a while, before they broke it._

_Shen spoke as Li helped herself to some soup._

"_I've, been thinking about you."_

"_You have?" Li asked as she finished sipping her spoon and responded with a mildly amused voice. "And what have I been doing in your thoughts as of late?"_

"_Come on Li. You too must feel, something between us. How I always seem to make you laugh. How you always seem to cheer me up in one of my foul moods. Surely after the time we have spent together, what we feel for each other is to some extent, mutual." Shen fished for an honest answer._

_Shen's hand touched Li's, and she looked at him with those beautiful jasmine irises._

"_Asides from Nana and Huo, you are the only true friend I've ever had. Someone who ignores my, disfigurement, my, differences." He spat distastefully._

"_You are not disfigured." Li spoke softly, reaching another wing to stroke Shen's reassuringly._

"_You are unique, and strong and noble."_

"_I am?"_

"_To a fault of course."_

_Shen groaned._

"_And the best peacock I've ever known."_

_Shen smiled, and put another wing on the small pile of feathered hands on the table between the pair._

"_Oh look." He spoke softly with a little playful cheer,- "I win."_

_Li chuckled softly. Shen gazed at her as she looked down at his hand, and back up to him._

"_I," Shen swallowed. Why did this get so hard all of the sudden?_

"_I care about you a great deal, Li."_

"_Aw, Shen."_

"_I mean it, I do."_

_He sucked in a deep breath._

"_And, I want our friendship , to be more. That is of course, if you may," another hard swallow.- "if you feel the same way that is."_

_Li's expression seemed to grow more serious and subtle, and she gazed back into his eyes._

"_It, has crossed my mind on some occasions."_

_Shen slowly began to move his face closer to hers, his beak inches away from hers-_

"_GULP-OH SHEN! You didn't tell me Li Yan was already here!" Huo shouted with surprise and en gusto at the sight of Li._

_Shen closed his eyes. One of these days he was going to throw something at that wolf and make him think twice about ruining his precious moments. Li seemed unfussed by the interruption, looking past Shen to smile happily at Huo._

"_Hello Huo! How have you been keeping?"_

"_Brilliant thanks Ma'am, the food here is delicious- and did you see that red panda- he was all over the place dodging those arrows!"_

"_I certainly did Huo, and have you been keeping Shen under control, making sure he is safe and alright?"_

"_Meh, he's had his moments- but that's him being ShennyShen!"_

_Li giggled at the nickname. Shen swore he nearly burst a blood vessel as he seethed, but then calmed himself; he would not lose control of his temper in front of Li. He turned coolly to Huo who had a noodle sticking out of his mouth._

"_Sometimes I find it is me who has to take care of you sometimes, Huo,- you've got sauce on your robe."_

"_What?" Huo looked down- "Aww man!"_

"_Here," Shen handed him a cloth for him to wipe himself clean. Li placed a hand on his shoulder._

"_Let us finish watching the show and celebrations first before we have further discussions."_

_Shen agreed._

"_Very well-let's."_

_And they turned to watch the show as the red panda was introducing a muscular but wide-eyed and timid looking snow leopard cub to the stage, pitting him against a block of wood that was bigger than him. His challenge; to break it in one unique strike from the hands. _

_The cub, who couldn't have been three or four, walked up to the block, placed himself in a ready stance and put his hand with the fingertips touching the block. Then he struck. This technique was known as the one-inch punch, infamous for its small movement but incredibly destructive power, rivalling that of the Wushi finger hold in terms of raw energy output. Everyone awed as the wood shattered into pieces, splinters flying everywhere but fortunately not hitting everyone including the leopard._

_There was a loud 'yeowch!'- Apparently one of the splinters did hit someone. The leopard looked at the source and immediately shrunk his head as Master Elephant turned from stretching to see one tiny splinter protruding from his buttock._

_Master Elephant looked down at the cowering leopard cub and gave a warm smile, plucking the chip from his butt cheek with little effort and said to the crowd- "Watch out everyone! This one's dangerous!" _

_The audience burst out with laughter and applauded the cute cub, who beamed and bowed with his red panda master who came up on stage and bowed down with him. When he stood he put a hand on the cubs shoulder and addressed the audience;_

"_Ladies and Gentlemen, Tai Lung! My first and most promising student!"_

_More applause was given and the audience, including Shen, Huo and Li continued to enjoy the meal and entertainment for the rest of the evening._

_It was midnight when the show finally ended and the king and queen had given their final speech, thanking everyone for coming and even bringing Lord Shen up to show him off as the proud heir to Gongmen Cit, before bidding everyone a safe journey home and thus concluding the festival._

_Shen said goodnight to his parents and walked back over to Huo and Li who were talking with-_

"_Nana!" Shen raced over to the goat and hugged her._

"_Oh my little Shenshen- I'm sorry I couldn't find myself a seat close enough to yours."_

"_Its ok, Nana, just as long as you are here- did you enjoy the festival?"_

"_Ho-oh yes I did- that red panda was very limber for his size and age and that cub- such strength in that one!" Ying mused with wonder as she remembered the events to refreshen her mind of the numerous stunts and wonders the furious five, the cub and Oogway had shown them._

"_How have you been- I haven't seen you in two days?" _

"_Oh- helping with palace duties Shen- we need to redecorate your room- you are coming of age I do think that your posters of kung fu masters and storybook heroes can be removed."_

"_Seventeen years old and you still have those posters up in your room?" Huo laughed incredulously_

"_Oh don't you start." Shen muttered darkly under his breath and put a wing to his face_

"_I think its cute." Li voiced simply._

_Ying turned to look at the graceful Li._

"_Hello Li- such a joy to see you again."_

"_And a good day to you Soothsayer." Li curtsied politely- "How are your duties faring?"_

"_They are not too taxing, thank you, my lady. It is nice to see Shen has such charming friends such as yourself around."_

_Huo took this opportunity to lean close to Ying's ear and whisper something hurried and filled with the odd giggle, though it was obvious that he was talking abour Shen and Li as he kept looking at them and pointing at them. Ying simply said 'aah' after he has finished and turned to Shen and Li._

"_Huo wanted to have a discussion with me regarding the hmm, ah servant pay. I will leave you two to talk amongst yourselves."_

_They walked past Shen. As Huo walked he spoke quietly but not entirely whispering to Shen's ear._

"_And for the record, she's a lot nicer than that harlot Shi."_

"_Huo!" _

"_Alright, alright, I'm going, jeez."_

_And with that Huo and Ying wondered off._

_Li giggled softly while Shen groaned and shook his head under the feather that was covering it to hide his embarrassment._

"_You're lucky to have someone like Huo. He's so thoughtful and protective of you."_

_Shen looked back at the teen wolf and old goat retreating to where Huo's pack was sat._

"_He is stubbornly loyal. Really leaves my side. But a brilliant friend. The firmest I've ever known. He would give his life for me."_

_He turned back to look distantly at the palace wall_

"_And, I would for him too."_

_He looked back up at Li- _

"_So, what did you want to talk about?"_

_Li paced herself, took in a deep breath and finally spoke, _

"_I, -this has only happened very recently, and my parents would let me come here now to tell you so I could say," She gazed up at him- "Goodbye."_

_Shen blanched._

"_Goodbye?"_

_Li pierced her beak, and her eyes blinked more. She drew in a shaky breath- this was clearly uncomfortable for her._

"_My family's presence here with the Kung Fu masters is no coincidence." She looked down and smoothed her robe._

"_My parents have been talking with Master Oogway. They and he believe that I have the potential to learn kung fu."_

_Shen cocked his head slightly_

"_So?"_

_Li looked back at Shen._

"_I am to leave to train under Master Falcon in the Himalayan Mountain Training Temple."_

_Shen's eyes opened wide._

"_You're- you're going? You didn't get a say in the matter? Was this forced on you?"_

_Li shook her head._

"_I was not forced, but I have to honour my family code to the Kung Fu masters. The palace needs new members and I was honoured myself to be chosen as an apprentice."_

_Shen opened his mouth, shock in his expression._

"_But- this is all so- Do you have to go?"_

_Li nodded sadly._

"_My grandparents were attacked by a lion who had gotten a hold of a shadow scroll of kung fu. Master Falcon was flying overhead when he saw the event. Grandmother was carrying my father's egg at the time. Falcon flew down and defeated the lion in one single strike. He safely escorted them to a shelter where they laid father's egg. Our family was indebted to him ever since."_

_She looked down at him._

"_I have to go. My parents will have already packed my bags. I can't delay them." She made to leave._

_Shen was aghast, but wasn't giving up hope just yet._

"_Please!" Shen stepped after her_

"_Sheyshey, don't make this harder than it already is." She turned with genuine sympathy in her concerned eyes._

"_But,"_

"_But what?" She softly asked._

"_About us?"_

"…_." She had no response._

"_Shey… I"_

"_Li.."_

_Li turned away-"I can't do this."_

_Shen stepped forward again, and spoke, this time with determination and boldness in his voice. He was going to do this, now or never._

"_Li!"_

"_What?" Li yelled her voice broke as she spoke._

_FLOWSH!_

_Li flinched as Shen's train shot open, revealing his white feathers and red eyed pattern adorning the quills. The tail had grown rapidly during Shen's teen years and now was much longer and taller than Shen's entire body._

_Li looked back and took in the sight of Shen's display. She blinked, her beak parted in awe._

"_It's…..."_

_Shen creased his eyes with worried anticipation._

"_It's so beautiful, Shen."_

_Shen finally found his voice._

"_I love you."_

_Li looked down at his face as Shen declared._

"_I love you with all my heart and want us to be together. When my parents pass me the throne, I want you by my side as my queen. I don't care what my parents think of it or what the whole city thinks if we decide to bring up children. You mean everything to me!"_

_Li gaped with her eyes surprised at Shen's passionate statement._

"_Shen.."_

"_Please don't leave me." The prince begged her –"What we have, is too precious to throw away."_

_Li closed her beak and looked to the side._

"_Shey." She looked up at him._

_Shen's train began to falter as she spoke-_

"_I can't. This is, too much."_

_Shen's tail drooped completely._

"_I-" tears flowed freely and he breathed shakily as he tried to stop himself from sobbing._

"_You are the most special thing that has happened to me in my worthless life."_

_He screwed his eyes shut as his head drooped, and then opened them._

"_I've had few other friends because of my condition, and you are the only person to have accepted me for it besides Huo and Nana."_

_Li looked at him with sympathy._

"_I thought we had something." Shen spat bitterly- "But you say we don't-" He said briskly and turned to walk away from her.- "Then I will trouble you no more. We clearly don't have a connection as I naively thought."_

"_Shen," _

_He heard her approaching him and tried to walk faster.  
"Don't try to comfort me-"_

_She spun him around and kissed him on the beak._

_He lifted his wings in protest, but gradually settled them on her shoulders as she locked her beak around his lower beak._

_She pulled away and stoked one wing down his face._

"_I didn't say we didn't."_

_She brought her forehead close to his and they remained there, feathered hands intertwined with each other._

_She pulled away._

"_But I can't stay."_

_Shen nodded his head and lowered his head, his crest deflated on his head._

_Li looked on at him, before speaking again._

"_One year." At this he looked up at her._

"_In one year from now I will have completed my first course. When I do, I will ask Master Falcon's permission to return to here and see you."_

_Shen's face brightened._

_Li smiled slightly._

"_I am sorry to have brought this on you. But I promise you I will return to you."_

_She held his hands closer to her body_

"_Will you promise to wait for me?"_

_Shen smiled and touched a curved feather to her chin, as if to behold her precious face one more time before she went from him for seemingly forever._

"_My dear, I will not look upon another woman with such desire and affection as I do upon you."_

_He drew himself closer to her.  
"Yes, I will wait for you."_

_Li smiled and they embraced each other and kissed again._

_Li spoke after they eventually broke their embrace-_

"_I have to go. My parents only wanted me here so long as to bid you farewell, and nothing else. I already told Huo and Nana while you were talking with your parents after the ceremony finished."_

_Shen sighed._

"_So be it." He lifted one of her wings to his mouth and kissed it._

"_I won't keep you."_

_Li smiled one of her compassionate smiles, with an affectionate twinkle behind them, before kissing him on the cheek and turning to leave._

_Shen waved as she opened her wings, flapped them and soared away from the palace._

_He watched her float away in the crystal moonlight, before turning and heading to Nana and Huo._

"_What happened?" Huo scampered up to him with a worried expression- "Is everything ok?"_

"_Did she.." Nana began to ask._

_Shen smiled a sad but peaceful smile._

"_It is little to be concerned about."_

"_You displayed your train! A- and I heard you shouting- how can it not be a big deal?" Huo shouted incredulously._

"_Are you ok?" Ying put a hoof on his shoulder. Shen reached up a wing and gently took it off, a serene smile on his features._

"_I'm perfectly fine, Nana. I just-" He glanced back at the shrinking form of Li as she swooped down to where her home was.- "I've just realised, despite having all the riches and gifts I could desire, and a lifestyle others would kill for, how lucky I really am." _

_Ying and Huo both grunted in surprise as Shen hugged them both one at a time, before heading to his palace and walking through the front doors, leaving the two with puzzled looks on their faces._

_Huo looked at Ying._

"_Whats was that all about?"_

_Ying simply shrugged, her expression just as taken aback by Shen's show of sentimentality as Huo was._

* * *

Shen was awakened by the smell of smoke, and the soot that had settled in his lungs causing them to spasm. He lifted his upper body up to allow his body to cough violently. He opened his eyes and looked around.

His heart sank lower and lower, his frustration already growing to boiling point despite his weakened state as he surveyed his entire battalion of warships float around in smoking pieces and charred timber in the sea around him. He looked up, and saw his super cannon completely bent out of shape from the impact of its own cannonball, hanging by the ropes of the deck that looped through the irrigated hook, around the cannon and side-holes of the cannon down to the deck. It's barrel seemed to be disfigured at the end, split with parts of it blossoming outwards like a petal flower.

_That bloody panda._

He felt the vibration on the deck with his feathers and talons as he felt the bear clamber onto the ravaged deck. The dragon warrior was standing a few feet behind him.

He remembered

* * *

_One summers evening, a day before his parents coronation anniversary. He was strolling through the corridors, thinking over in his head what Li would look like when she will return from her flight from the Himalayan temple. She was definitely coming- he had received her letter a few days ago, telling him Master Falcon was impressed enough by her performance to let her take leave and explaining how long it will take her to travel back to Gongmen City. He had trembled with anticipation, and great excitement- he had not stopped thinking of her every day, even forcing himself to make sure he wouldn't forget at times he believed would be more likely to forget, by painting pictures of her by perfect memory and hanging them around his laboratory and bedroom._

_He bid a servant goodnight, taking Li's advice of kindness equals respect from his love to heart, when he saw one of the grand rooms doors open a crack. Sighing, he went over to close it when he saw someone inside._

'_What was Nana doing there?' he wondered. He would have opened the door to say goodnight to her, but then saw that she was talking to someone. He shifted his sight to see it was, and was even more surprised to see his baba and mama there sat on the secondary thrones utilised for the lower floors, much small than their massive relatives upstairs._

_He pressed his ear against the door._

"_I'm worried about him." Qiang spoke up. "I fear that, we have not been giving him the attention a proper child deserves in his life. Despite his ailments, he has continued to reach and even exceed our expectations of him. If he is to rule Gongmen city, I must know that he will be able to do so safely."_

"_While it is comforting to see you care about your son," Ying happily spoke- "I believe your fears are poorly founded. Shen has changed so much since he was a child and with his intelligence and skill, he will lead Gongmen into a new and prosperous era. I don't need my foresight to tell you that."_

"_Truly you are wise," Le Hua replied- "But we are more concerned about his, interests, specifically his obsession with fireworks."_

_Qiang continued- "I may not be so attentive when it comes to my son, but everytime I do see him he seems to do everything a normal self-respecting prince would not do. He play with fireworks in his lab all day and he spends a lot of his time alone, like he's planning something with them."_

_The Soothsayer shook her head and smiled incredulously- _

"_Planning something? Why what with Shen's relationship with Li Yan and Huo and myself spending time with him, Shen has had rarely anytime to plan anything. Though he still spends time in the laboratory, he has done nothing recently to cause us concern."_

"_Except continue to make more plans for his accursed cannons."_

_Ying Sung frowned and tapped her cane once on the floor to emphasise her point as she spoke_

"_His work with his new weapon is his own doing- I let him choose his path and watched him closely as he matured. He hasn't even dared misuse the cannon after that incident with the peahen. He is so much stronger as an individual than he ever was in his youth."_

"_That does not answer our question, Soothsayer. Is he going to carry on with this quest to make this new terrible weapon and bring dishonour to our nation, and bring horrible darkness to anyone who dare oppose his rule?" Qiang dismissed and pressed on_

"_And what if he does? What will happen if Shen does choose to rule Gongmen city with an iron fist and use these cannons to enforce his rule." Le Hua lowered her head- "We have seen him enough times to know that Gongmen city will not be enough for him."_

"_For all his noble intentions," Qiang joined- "We know he has greed in his heart. The same greed that we had when we were as a young as him." He finished with a look of shame on his face._

"_We, keep having these fears that he will be overcome by these, crazy thoughts of power from his new creations, fuelled by his ambition."_

"_In times of peace?" Ying questioned- " I highly doubt Shen will want such a fate to befall Gongmen and China."_

"_It is just a feeling, but we have called you here to give us closure, to know that our kingdom will be safe in Shen's hands." Le Hua answered for the both of them._

"_We want you to make a prediction." Qiang concluded bluntly. Ying looked with uncertainty at the pair._

"_So be it." Ying eventually agreed_

_She took out a bit of Shen's robe that she had stolen and one of his feathers as well, and took her bow out of her bag, placing it down in front of her. She threw in the cloth, and then the feather, then added some powder._

_The bowl's ingredients exploded and through the smoke, a white, small peacock rose from the bowl. Then it spun out of shape and reformed, spinning until the shape became the Chinese ying-yang black and white symbol. The parents stood in shock and fear as they too saw the shape shifting before them._

"_If Shen continues on his current path, it will lead to darkness, and eventually, he will be defeated by a warrior in black and white."_

_Le Hua put a wing to her mouth._

"_My- my goodness." She turned to Qiang- "We- we should have spent more time with him. We should have never abandoned him."_

"_He won't stop." Qiang faced the ugly truth- "He has the same fiery heart as I do, and he won't give up on his inventions just as easily. We have to stop him, for good this time."_

_Ying, who was just as shocked as the parents were about the prediction, turned to the half-open door._

"_We need to warn Shen- Where is he?"_

_A noise behind the door caused everyone in the room to turn at once. Qiang ran to the door as fast as he could._

"_Who was it?" Ying asked._

"_Is Shen there?"_

_Qiang looked from one end of the corridor to the other._

"_No."_

_Something got his eye on the ground, and Qiang bent down to pick it up and look at it better._

_A white peacock feather._

"_But I'm afraid he heard us."_

* * *

"How, how did you do it?" Shen finally asked, gradually turning his head slightly in Po's direction.

Po, ever the all-knowing one when it came to describing technique, shrugged.

"I dunno, I guess you set your feet apart, keep the shoulders loose.

"Not that!" Shen bitterly remanded the panda- "How did you find peace?"

Shen looked at the panda, shaking his head in stupendous disbelief

"I took away your parents."

His shoulders sagged as the true weight of his actions came down to bear on him.

"I scarred you for life!"

Po's face expressed a form of clarity and sympathy.

"See that's the thing, Shen. Scars heal."

_No._ Shen blotted out the words, refusing to take in the pandas words. They were incorrectly applied anyway, another sign of the pandas astounding ignorance, and yet somehow he was still able to defeat him.

The prophecy was fulfilled, despite everything he did to change it.

* * *

_Shen approached the courtyard where Huo's pack was training. Huo looked up_

"_Hey!- You're back!"_

_Shen stormed up to him._

"_Assemble your pack, now. We are going on a campaign."_

_Huo cocked his head in confusion._

"_Huh? A cam-what? What's going on?"_

"_Do as you are told. Call in your wolves. We are heading out as soon as possible. Tell them to arm themselves to the teeth, literally if they have to."_

_Huo was taken aback_

"_To where, Shen?- you're not making any sense."_

_Shen turned to the doors of the courtyard entrance._

"_Just don't ask any more questions and follow me. I will tell you more on the way there."_

_Shen had one destination in mind._

_After walking for two hours over bridges and valleys without rest, Huo finally plucked up the courage to ask Shen again what was going on._

"_Shen? Shen listen to me. You're starting to unnerve me Shen. Where are we going?"_

"_We are getting closer." Was the peacock's only answer. Huo noticed him carrying his large halberd polearm sword on his back that he was given for his eighteenth birthday two months ago, and couldn't help but shiver from the sight of it. Special swords like the one Shen had were meant to do a lot of damage just by sliding it lightly over one's skin alone, nevermind the carnage those things could cause in full use._

"_One more hill." Shen was astutely aware of the regions and villages, and made the verbal note to break the wolfs reverie. Huo was not liking Shen's sudden mysterious alter-ego one bit, and given how skilled a combatant Shen could be, felt something slightly menacing radiating from his character._

_He was ready to kill._

_Not to protect his city or fight for someone he loved, but to kill, and slaughter._

_Huo had to admit, even with his own savagery, he couldn't help but pale before Shen's aggression._

_To be scared of him._

_They reached the top of the peak, and both the leaders looked down upon a large sprawling village that stretched for miles. Its inhabitants; Pandas. About nearly thousands to count._

_Huo smiled as recognition entered his mind and he pointed to the village._

"_Ha! This is An Jing Dan Village- Largest Panda Province in all of China- I know some of pandas here- Hey look its Xing and Chun! Hey!" He waved at them. The pandas saw him and waved back. Others had looked up and began to talk amongst themselves why a company of wolves led by Prince Shen was standing one of the rises overlooking their villages._

_Huo turned to Shen._

"_So, what are we doing here?"_

_Shen reached up one feather and drew his sword, pointing it to the floor. His gaze never left the panda village._

_His destiny can be changed. He was meant to use his cannons for the good of Gongmen city, and better the whole province for it. Few would question his authority. His parents would finally be proud of him for what he could accomplish, and he would get the respect he truly deserved from everyone._

_Friendship and love had its rewards, but for him, still bitter from the neglect of his parents and being ruled by his weaknesses all his life, they were not enough in the face of acquiring true power._

_He had the taste of it in his mouth from his princely life, and it was within his grasp. A chance to rule without question, with Li Yan at his side, and the power to strike fear in anyone who would challenge him. His weapon would change China, and he would be truly unstoppable._

_And fate had the audacity to tell him to stop, to write his end in the stars by giving him an unconquerable foe to defeat him. To undo everything._

_Well, not while he could still do something to stop it._

_Some of the pandas were beginning to look uneasy. One of them, with his bottom canines sticking up from his bottom jaw with his ears pointing straight up was holding a large hammer, no doubt the village leader. He began to walk away from the village and up the hill slowly towards the peacock, a look of unease on his face, but relaxed, clearly just wanting to talk to him._

_Huo turned to Shen, unsure what to do._

"_So, what do you want us to do. Shen?"_

_Shen adjusted his sword to a grip in his feathers so that he could swing it with ease._

"_In the field of battle, you shall address me as Lord Shen,"_

_He turned to the wolf._

"_And I want you to kill them." He stated coolly to Huo, whose face returned to being confused, with a trace of shock and fear from what he just said. –"Kill them all."_

* * *

"No they don't. **Wounds** heal." Shen hissed at Po.

Po blinked at the mistake he made.

"Oh yeah." He said nonchalantly. "What do scars do? They fade, I guess?"

Shen grimaced at Po, still on his knees. This entire exchange was pathetic.

"I don't care what scars do."

_Left and right, bodies lay his sword now a darker crimson colour._

_Death surrounding him from all sides._

_Huo's pack, reluctant to follow his orders at first, were easily swayed when he convinced them the pandas were planning an uprising. No survivors were permitted._

_Huo stayed by his side, his crusher hammer in hand, fending off any brave pandas who dared approach the prince._

_Shen heard crying. He turned and saw a panda cub, holding a cuddly toy in his hand._

_He remembers his father taking away his cuddly toys after he showed him his cannon designs._

_His train flares open, now fully matured, signalling that the attack was full on and he pointed to the cub._

"_GET THEM ALL!"_

_Huo and another wolf ran and leapt through the air, allowing their bloodlust to take over._

_Then the village leader, somehow still alive leaps out of the flames and swings his hammer blindly._

_The mallet connects with both wolves, and Shen hears a pained scream from Huo as it drags across the left side of his face. He steps to the side as Huo's body crashes down next to him._

_He looks up at the panda, who is joined by another smaller one who picked up the cub._

"_Take our son, and run away!" The panda ordered._

_Shen snarled and turned to Huo, who was holding the left side of his face._

"_Up. Order your wolves to pursue any survivors. Make sure none escape."_

_Shen is unfazed by the gory scratch and bruising the mallets strike has left over Huo's left eye._

"_Pursue that mother and child. I will join you shortly."_

_Huo nodded slowl, then , yelled at another group of wolves._

"_YOU FOUR! FOLLOW ME!" His voice was hysterical, hoarse sounding, as though he was afflicted by a terrible disease. His other intact eye was bloodshot, not from the violence or bloodlust, but something else entirely._

_Agony, and grief._

_Shen was hollow. He would not allow any weakness to stop him now. No fear or personal feelings will ruin his rise to power. _

_Huo took off after the pandas. The farmer panda jumped in his way and tried to crush him with another intended strike from his hammer, but then yelled in pain as a thrown knife hit him in the shoulder, causing him to fall down. Shen flexed his wing from its thrown position and looked back at Huo._

"_WIPE THEM OUT!"_

_After disposing of ten more pandas with strikes from his halberd, Shen races into the woods, following a torch bearing wolf and Huo holding his hammer. They were closing in on the mother._

_They finally found her, waving like a madwoman, possibly intending to draw them away from the other survivors._

_He thought he glimpsed something in the basket of radishes at the bottom of the hill as he ran past, but ignored it._

_They surround her, and Shen approaches her, his halberd spinning in his feathers._

"_Please…." The panda mother lifts her hands._

_SHWING!_

"You've got to let go of that stuff in the past cos it just doesn't matter."

_Shen is standing before his mother and father, his feathers drooped, his quills sagged down. His sword still had blood stains on it. Behind him, Huo is standing. He is trembling. He has been trembling ever since the end of… the deed._

_His father is holding his mother, just, staring with horror at him at a loss for words._

_His mother is screaming at him- "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!" over and over, supported by Qiang because she is too weak from shock to stand._

_Shen looks to his right._

_Li is standing there. She is crying softly, her eyes overflowing with tiny rivulets of tears._

_His mother stops screaming ,long enough for Shen to step forward._

"_I-…I did what I had to."_

_He looks at all of their face, desperately searching for any sign of approval._

"_I wanted to prove fate wrong!"_

_He looked upon the soothsayer._

"_Nana, I was scared- you said-"_

"_Only if you continued on your dark path." She too is weeping, but no sobs broke her steady voice- "You had a choice to stop with your obsession with fireworks."_

"_I wanted to make Gongmen City stronger." Shen pleads._

"The only thing that matters, is what you chose to be now." Po finished, trying to coax Shen to surrender, to give up after he had come so far.

No.

"_Despite that we repeatedly told you to leave those things well alone. You were going to turn it into an abomination!" Qiang yells at him._

"_I was trying to IMPROVE IT. HISTORY ISN'T DEFINED BY PEACOCKS USING FIRE TO MAKE PRETTY THINGS AND DAZZLE OUR ENEMIES TO DEATH! TO HOLD SUCH POWER IN YOUR HANDS AND PASS IT UP IS TO POSSESS THE WISDOM OF A DOTARD!"_

"_You dare question my rulership?" Qiang steps away from his mother, who had barely recovered long enough to hug herself and stand on shaky legs, and stepped towards him. Shen, cowed, found himself backing out the way he came, back through the front palace doors and onto the steps of the courtyard._

_Shen looks back to Li, who had followed Qiang and his wife, along with the Soothsayer outside._

"_Li? Please! I- I had no choice- a warrior of black and white was going to kill me- I had to take no chances."_

"_And what else will you have done to stop your prophecy coming true? Kill all the cranes? The white tigers? The snow leopards?"- She looked down at herself- "ME?"_

"_No! I wouldn't dream of doing that- I was so certain- I thought I could change fate, so that I wouldn't die, so that I could rule Gongmen City, with you by my side!"_

_Li cast her head to the side, more tears were flowing down her cheeks._

"_I can't even look at you anymore."_

* * *

Shen took this in, all his memories, all this pain searing through his mind like a hot blade through flesh. He could feel some of his knives still intact in his sleeves.

* * *

_Shen is crushed. He staggers back as Qiang steps forward, enraged._

"_You have brought shame and tragedy to our dynasty. And you still think you can rule Gongmen after commiting this monstrous act?" He stood up taller, overshadowing the younger white peacock- "Genocide does not make kings, Shen. You will never rule this city."_

_Shen shook his head._

"_No- no please."_

"_I banish you from this city along with your companion and pack to live out your days in the wilderness and to die wifeless and childless with your mongrel dogs, FOREVER!"_

_Shen jerked back from this punishment._

* * *

"You're right….." Shen nods, facing away from the panda.

* * *

_He looked at the Soothsayer, and Li, for any favour to support him. But they did not speak up for him. Qiang's judgement was final._

_Shen closed his beak._

"_So." He gave an icy glare at his family and lover.- "You would betray me like this. Deny me my rightful power!"_

_When silence answered him, he growled and yelled_

"_SO BE IT! You think I will simply accept this, but no!"_

_He raised his sword in a gesture of defiance._

"_I will return to this city, even if all my years of youth are spent in planning my revenge. Someday, I will return with an army tens of thousands strong! And when I do return, All of China will bow before at my feet!"_

_He stared at Le Hua_

"_You were right, Mother. When I take over this city, it still won't be enough for me. I will expand my army, and conquer all of China with my new weapon! And if not China, than the whole world will kneel before me! Mark my words" He pointed a feather at his parents. "When you are prostrated before me, then you will taste the inferiority and pain I have felt for all these years, for your refusal to love me!"_

_He turned and walked through the group of wolves, all bruised, cut and batted from the assault on the Panda Village, heading to the courtyard entrance._

_Huo turned to follow him._

"_Huo?"_

_He turned to look at the Soothsayer who had risked approaching him._

"_Take care of him."_

_Huo nodded and gave a short bow, before turning to leave with Shen._

_They walked past the city gates, into the horizon, in the direction of the rising sun, seeming to disappear from the eyes of all, forever._

* * *

"...Then I chose THIS!" Shen brought three of his throwing knives up into his left hand and swung viciously at the panda. The panda ducked and weaved every strike, causing Shen to become even more enraged.

* * *

_Staggering in the wilderness, Huo's pack forced to raid and perform dishonourable deeds just to ensure food stayed in their bellies. Shen spending nights and nights alone, a repeat of his childhood, except this time with no Nana to comfort him._

* * *

"You." Shen hissed darkly as he leapt towards the annoyingly agile panda- "You took everything from me!"

Po jumped back " Well uh…sorry?"

"You, you just had to be born- just had to survive- you were hidden in the crate of radishes, weren't you!" The peacock seethed.

"If the wind was blowing in a different direction, if the wolves had picked up your scent- if I had seen you or heard you crying- if it weren't for fate I would not be in this position now!"

Po brought up his hands and made them into fists, ready.

"Well you shouldn't have tried to change fate, Shen. Your nanny with the beard told me how you still could have stopped what you were doing with the fireworks while you still could."

"ANNGH!" Shen swung again at the panda who dodged yet again.

"How you had the girl of your dreams, and I'm guessing that wolf guy who was with you as well used to be your best friend….."

"SHUT UP!" Shen screamed with fury at the panda and lifted his wing for another strike.

"And you threw it all away just cos you got scared of losing your power."

"I SAID SHUT U-" Shen didn't finish as he swung forward, only to have the panda sidestep him and grab his wing and his chest, spinning them both around. Shen grunted and then cried out indignantly, spinning around with the momentum so fast and slashing the panda's cheek with his knives.

Po yelped as he spun from the impact, putting a paw to his face to check for blood, only to feel the blades having only passed through fur and a very fatty outer 'layer'.

Shen simply drew more blades on both his wings and threw them at incredible speed and strength at Po.

* * *

_The mind numbing insanity as he labored and planned for many years over the design of his cannon._

_Growing apart from Huo over the massacre as time passed._

_Eventually they recruit a gang of gorillas and occupy an abandoned metal work factory high in the mountains._

_More years passed as Shen begins the construction of his cannon, his threat to butcher anyone with his sword if they so much as defected. His will becomes a law that dictates whether they live or die. _

_Huo still trying to reconnect with him, staying loyal to him and him only._

_Still trying to protect him from the monsters in his sleep._

_And now he is dead._

* * *

Some of the knives missed Po by inches, despite his ridiculous size. He kicks up a board to block more of the knives, shaking from each impact as three aimed for his head or heart smack into it.

Shen charged forward, pulling his halberd out of the deck and leaping into the air, again, aiming the sword at Po's head.

Po rolled out of the way, only to have Shen slice one of the ropes holding up the destroyed cannon.

Shen adjusts his sword and swings again and again, only to become more and more frustrated as Po manuevres and dances out of his way.

* * *

_He misses his parents and Nana. He burns for his love Li. Knowing that she would never understand._

_Never hold him again. Never….forgive him._

_LIES!_

_His invention bites him one day, when a cascade of spikes burn his talons off his feet._

_He returned to his home, in his late-forties, followed by his new army._

_More of his old memories confronted him as well as the kung fu masters in charge of Gongmen City._

_Spending nights alone in his infancy because his parents would be afraid he was born with a contaminating disease._

_Feeling so pathetic when he is teased for his size and weakness by other stronger children, eventually forcing his parents to have Nana home-educate him away from any public or rich schools._

_His discovery of how bitter and crushing love could be, his frustration of being so easily mislead by deceptive upper class women._

_His sickness making him inferior, his resentment for his parents conflicting with his love and admiration of them._

_And the madness, and the psychopathy setting in after so many years alone._

_Agony led his life, and gradually the growing suspicion that all along, his family wasn't the problem._

_He was._

_But he refuses to accept it._

* * *

"Why so afraid, panda?" Shen spins and thrusts faster at the panda, who is barely dodging by a hair's breadth- "Fate made you my enemy from your very birth- and now you back away from even fighting me. You are a weak coward!"

"Shen please listen to me!" Po was sweating. There was no way he could keep this up forever.

"You can still change! You can find inner peace!"

"THE WHOLE IDEA OF PEACE IS A LIE! YOU WILL NOT TRICK ME!" Shen screamed- "NOW FIGHT ME LIKE A TRUE WARRIOR SHOULD!"

The shouting was beginning to drain him, but Shen wanted none other than to see that panda dead.

He carried on slicing his sword through the air, cutting through more and more ropes as the panda pleaded him to stop.

"Shen, stop! The ropes- the cannon- you're going to-"

"Enough talk! I will cut you down where you stand!"

* * *

_He still sees all the faces, of all the pandas he killed. He spends many more lonely nights wishing Li would find him, telling him she had forgiven him and understood why Shen had to do it. She stays with him as a result of admiring his show of strength, and how he could easily defeat an entire village of stupid stinking pandas, if fate had not make them take all he had from him._

_Everything, leaving him to decadent ruin, to cause him more and more suffering._

_He was a proxy for fate and destiny to play with. A toy, used for one thing only._

_Pain, the absorption and giving of it that represented all of his life, that he could have shaken off if pandas didn't exist in the first place._

* * *

Shen was completely over the edge with bloody intent.

"DIE! DIE! DIE!"

He is too fat gone to come back.

"Shen you have to stop- the cannon is going to fall and take this ship apart!"

Po rolls back to where he first was on the boat, away from Shen's blade as it cuts through the last rope holding the cannon in place.

Shen turns to pursue the panda, but then hears creaking as the cannon falls from where it is being held.

He looks up to see the cannon falling down from its cradle of splintered and shattered wood on top of him, blotting out his sunlight.

He can't get away in time.

He closes his eyes, all his memories showing themselves before and the truth hits home-

"What a fool." He whispered softly to himself as the cannon fell down towards him.

The panda was right. He truly did have everything, but let his fear take it all away.

He closed his eyes. He found it quite fitting that he be killed by his own cannon, to be crushed by his own ambitions.

_Ironic_

He thinks of kissing Li Yan as the shadow of the cannon engulfs him whole.

He thinks he can see Huo, running forward to tackle him playfully the way he always did when they were chick and pup.

He takes one last breath.

**A/N: Dan-Dun- Duhh! MOAR Suspense!**

**I didn't say he died. Yet ;)**

**Wow- this one took me hours, if not days to do.**

**Shen saying that the idea of peace is a lie happens to come from the Sith mantra Peace is a lie- part of the sith code from star wars- oh noes Shen is ev0l5 and haz turned 2 dark side completely **

**Ah, maybe.**

**PLEASE R&R- Your reviews strengthen this story and will make it popular. That would be awesome.**

**Thanks again for reading- hope you enjoyed.**

**Thought I'd give Shen more reasons to be evil with an OC love interest- thought I'd heighten the tragedy of Shen's past by giving him a chance for happiness, but then he would lose it all because of his own selfish desires and insecurities. Let me know what you thought of Li Yan. **

**I'm sure all the female fans of Shen will enjoy seeing him get all emotional and weepy and romantic- soppy stuff I know, but I wanted to have Shen be happy once in a while**

**As for the Chinese names lately, in case you were curious, I've been using a pinyan Chinese to English translator dictionary.**

**Ying Song means gentle kind**

**Qiang Shi Mo means mighty sword- giving a mighty name seeing as he's loyalty and all**

**Le Hua means – Lily – something- I forgot- bad reason to mix words together**

**Huo Dun means Fire Shield- which I think is a cool name because he's really aggressive but is always protecting Shen.**

**Shi Xing means Fashionable**

**Duan means- Satin**

**Jiao means Proud**

**Li Yan means Jasmine Eyes- figures**

**Xing means happiness**

**Chun means joyful**

**See you guys soon **


	6. Shen Vs Po The Conclusion

"SHEN! SHEN COME ON- WAKE UP! SHEN!"

He felt cold and wet, cocooned in his robe that clung to his body like sarcophagi wrabbing.

His back and head was touching something, a bank, sodden ground, soft and sandy.

Breathing hurt. His lungs expanded and something seemed to tear open in his chest. He felt warm damp spread over his chest and somewhere along his wings.

He was hurt. Very badly.

He opened his eyes, weak and fluttering. He was almost drained, faint and exhausted.

His vision blurred into focus as he opened his eyes.

He saw the sky, cloudy and yellow in the glare of the rising sun.

His nose caught salt and copper. His blood and the sea, and..

"SHEN!"

Wet dog?

Shen turned his gaze to his right, where a dark blur was above him. He could not make it out at first, but he felt large hands grip him on his shoulders. Hands with pads and claws on them

He blinked again.

One red eye, the other scared and forced shut. Pointed ears, big black nose and fangs and a black ruffled mane. Damp fur.

Huo?

"You're awake!"

Shen couldn't speak. He looked down at the wolf's body.

There were crude white patches of white cloth, patched onto Huo's body where his knives had struck him. The way they were so crudely applied were clear indicaters that Huo had put them on himself

That means he has had to take out all three of the knives that were lodged in his chest ,shoulder and stomach.

Shen blinked his eyes shut to blot out the painful imagery. Swallowed hard.

"Shen? Are you ok?"

Shen did not answer for five seconds, then

"What happened?"

Huo lowered his head and let go of his shoulders.

"The cannon- it, fell on the boat. It was going to crush you."

"How- " Shen weakly asked.

"I-" Huo breathed in an out for a few seconds- "I swam to the shore. Took the knives out and dragged myself to the dock, patched myself where you were taking the ships."

Shen closed his eyes as Huo spoke.

"I saw the panda do that, thing with hands, and saw him destroy your ship."

"The wolves…" Shen managed to cough out- "Did any of the wolves manage to survive?"

Huo lowered his head.

"Yeah, some were knocked out, but they got themselves off and onto the deck. They're scattered now for all I know. Ran into the city to hide. I don't know where.." Huo didn't finish.

"And the ones- " Shen wheezed –" The ones that I fired on?"

Huo looked him in the eye for the second time.

"I saw….just, fur, and charred metal."

Shen couldn't help but let out a small groan. Weak, pitiful, but a groan nonetheless.

"All of them, for nothing."

He looked at Huo.

"I should have listened to you."

Huo's look was neutral, but his eyebrow still bent somewhat.

"You were being you. Ruthless you, that is. Not letting anything stand against you. Leader's resolve."

His voice didn't give any emotion away, it was just, toneless.

"Pretty admirable."

Shen shook his head.

"Don- Don't- just.. don't even try…" Shen gritted his beak as more pain spread about his body.

"How did you…"

"I swam over to the boat you and the panda were on. Everyone was just focussed on you two. I was gonna see if I could, help, but then you two started talking and I..I couldn't…I couldn't find the will." Huo answered.

Huo blinked and looked to the side.

"There was just no point anymore. But then you started attacking him, and then the cannon came down."

Shen swallowed again.

"I ran and grabbed you. I took us off the boat just when the cannon hit. We hit the water and, that's when you blacked out I guess."

Shen grunted as he tried to move. Huo put his hand on his shoulder.

"Stay still!"

"I think-" Shen looked down at his robe.- "I'm…I'm hu- urt."

Huo looked down, and opened Shen's robe.

Shen looked up, past Huo.

"How bad – is it?"

Shen looked at Huo's face. He saw, if he could focus hard enough-

Worry, and shock.

"I didn't jump far enough."

"What?" Shen managed to let out before another flare of pain cut into his chest again.

"I –" Huo breathed out and breathed in again- " The explosion –I- We got caught in it. I felt hot but, I didn't think any of the shrapnel or debris hit us."

Huo breathed uneasily, his one eye closing slowly, and opening again.

"I'm, I'm so stupid- I didn't."

"Answer my question, dog and tell how bad it is!" Shen strained to whisper fiercely at Huo.

Huo shook his head.

"It's- its's very bad. The wound- whatever hit you, went through one part of you, and went out the other side."

Shen closed his eyes, and found it harder to open them again.

"I…I'm dying." It wasn't a question, or a sound of resignation. It was just a statement. As simple as that.

Huo looked at him, his one eye, was glimmering.

"Save your tears, mongrel." Shen spat at him, daring him to cry.

"I meant to kill you, when I threw, those knives."

Huo smirked.

"Yeah well, I'm as tough as they come," he laughed softly- "And you're a lousy shot."

"I- don't think you understand, you stupid-" Shen gritted his beak again in pain, out of derogatory insults to hurl at Huo. That or his weary head was too tired to think of any more- "You disobeyed me." Shen paused- "Huh-you stood in my way. Nothing-"

"Stands in your way, I get it, boss." Huo spoke quietly.

"So why did you do it?"

Huo shook his head slowly.

"I couldn't do it anymore. Earlier tonight, when we sparred, it brought back memories. Of the pandas. The village. You before you turned, well, into whatever you were."

He sniffed.

"I couldn't see myself, or you, just, - the people having to die- I couldn't do it anymore."

Shen moaned.

"Have you really grown so weak?"

Huo averted his eyes as the prince berated him.

"So useless, to me. Dead weight- I should have killed you when I had the chance- I should have aimed for your head all those times I punished you- never got anything done right." He coughed again- "And you let them win. Its all your fault."

Huo looked down.

"I'll bear my punishment when its due. But with all due respect, we have to get you out of here before-"

"AAIIIIIIIIHHH!- Mummy!- theres a weird, monster and a wet dog on the bank- MUMMY!"

"Too late." Huo looked up to see a young rabbit turn tail and flee up the bank to where her mother was, who was already calling for help with the other townspeople. They could all be heard shouting and talking amongst themselves- Get help- the furious five- find the dragon warrior- the kung fu masters.

_So I am still in Gongmen City-_Shen lamented inside. He had hoped to be washed away along with the wreckage into the rivers and away, far away, anywhere but Gongmen.

"Oops." Huo looked after the rabbit and at the crowd.

"As mindful as an inebriated elephant-" Shen coughed out, before muttering to himself- "Monster…"

Huo looked down at Shen

"Never mind about that- we have to get you out of here."

Before he could say anything to stop him, Huo had grabbed him and was half-way through putting him onto his shoulder. This was too much for him and he yelled and cawed out in agony. Huo set him down immediately.  
"Sh-Shen! I'm sorry- I'm so sorry."

He bent down, his hands up, not sure what to do.

"Just- just tell me where it hurts- come on buddy just-" Shen glared up with one eye at the bumbling wolf as he panicked.- "tell me what I can do."

"Its no use." Shen gasped- "Its over for me."

"No!" Huo growled stubbornly- "Come on I've seen you take worse than this and live! You can make it!"

"I can tell you've, lost more blood than me- otherwise how could you not remember what I just said." Shen coughed some more and spat some liquid out. Judging from Huo's face he probably did not want to know what it was.

"I'm finished, Huo- and there's nothing you can do about it."

"Don't say that!" Huo yelled at the peacock.

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" a new gruff voice yelled out.

Shen looked out the corner of his eye.

Jumping and somersaulting over the crowd, with Po the odd exception blundering through were the Kung Fu masters.

The small one Shifu soared through the air and landed to the right of the wolf, arms and stance poised in a martial arts stance.

Master Viper, Mantis and Crane followed shortly after, creating a circle surrounding the wolf and peacock, poised in different stances and positions. Tigress, Croc, Ox arrived, taking longer to come down the embankment.

And finally Po, stumbling and out of breath, ambled over to the group.

"So- Sorrry- phew!- Make a hole- comin through –woo!- man sorry." He arrived and bent over to catch his breath, panting with his hands on his knees.

"Sorry I took a while- so whats going on I-" Po looked down and saw Shen –"YAAAH!" He jumped back, one leg up and both hands held up to his head- "SHEN STILL ALIVE!"

"PO!" Tigress sternly spoke to the panda

"Sorry- just freaked out there for a little-"

Shifu shook his head.

"This-" Shen whispered faintly- "is the imbecile you have to deal with?"

"More than you know." Shifu mournfully spoke, before reforming his stance-"Lord Shen, by order of the Masters Council, you are found guilty of multiple crimes and must be brought to a hall or court of law to be brought to justice and to be aptly punished, in the name of Kung Fu."

"Whoa- man that was so cool! If only I had a scroll or some paper to take that down so I can use it on some goons!" Po began to get excited and look around him, as if the bank or river would be hiding a scroll or ink pointed quills right here at his convenience

"Po.." Shifu warned testily.

"Sorry."

Shifu looked back to Shen.

"You will come with us."

A large foot stepped into his vision and a low growl rumbled through the air as Huo stepped between Shen and Shifu.

Shifu looked up at the wolf, unintimidated.

"I would advise you to stand aside, Huo Dun. While this is Shen's punishment, you too have equal charges that must be answered for, and I would rather you stay alive to see through your trial than kill you right here, right now. You are injured and will not stand a chance against so many kung fu masters at the same time."

The wolf growled even louder, before speaking.

"I'll land a hit on at least half of you guys before you take me out. I'd rather die than let you touch Shen."

Shifu snorted quietly to himself before looking down at Shen.

"Is this the kind of fool you have to deal with?"

Shen sighed.

"He's cocky and stupid, to put it bluntly."

He looked at Huo, who was stood over him still.

"Irrationally loyal, and, a steady friend."

Huo stopped growling and turned to look at Shen. There was a rare look of surprise on the rugged wolf's face.  
"Shen.."

"Oh don't start you big sop." Shen tried to push himself up straight, but ended up grimacing more in terrible pain instead and slid down in defeat- "Unbelievable, you are."

"WHERE IS HE! WHERE IS-SHEN!"

Shen blinked again to keep himself awake

"Nana?

Causing more of a ruckus than the masters did, Ying Song pushed through the crowd and came down the hill as steadily as she could. The Soothsayer stopped next to Tigress and gasped as she took in the full view of the shoddy, injured peacock.

"Oh Shen."

"Nana- ho- how-"

"No- sh sh sh." Ying knelt by Shen- "Don't talk so much- just, just relax."

Shen moaned slightly as a hoof caressed his small head.

"I thought I se-sent you away."

"It will take more than you being stroppy than to get rid of me for God, Shen." Ying smiled.

Shen tried to smile, but ended up coughing more instead.

Ying looked at the others.

"Well- why haven't you moved him- he'll die of an allergy if he stays out here too long!"

"Nana…" Huo tried to interrupt.

"Well surely you all aren't so cruel as to let him die here, will you- you just can't I-"  
"Nana!" Huo spoke up-

"What?"

Huo looked at Shen, forcing himself to accept that maybe, possibly, that- "I don't think-"

Ying bent down and opened Shen's robe, seeing the wound, and gasped in shock. She looked up at Shen's withered, tired face, his quills limp, his head-crest tustled and ruined.

"Oh-" Ying moaned- "Oh my poor Shen."

"Oh damn you not you as well." Shen turned his head away from her, but ended up facing Huo, Shifu and Mantis.

Why couldn't he just be alone at this time. This time in his life, where he thought that no-one will really miss him as he passed.

Shen gasped as much more pain ripped into his body. He didn't know how much longer he was going to last.

He could feel himself growing weaker and weaker by the moment.

"I deserved this."

Huo shook his head, a tear falling down his cheek.  
"DON'T YOU DARE DENY THE TRUTH! DON'T YOU DARE PITY ME!" Shen screamed with more volume than he thought he could muster, which surprised everyone as he flailed his wings and tails, trying to throw himself at the wolf and attack him for being so weak.

"Don't you- arrgnh!" He grunted in pain, his eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets as he clutched at his wound.

"Shen…" Ying sobbed in grief. Tigress looked behind her, and then to Po.

"Po, the townspeople. I don't think they should see this."

Po looked back.

"Oh- right" He walked up to the crowd

"Everyone- if you guys could just, step back and try to ignore what's going on- we kung fu masters will handle this, so please, go back to whatever you were doing, please, thank you."

The townsfolk grudgingly nodded and grumbled as they walked away, down the street, but then crept up behind barrels and crates, peeking over and trying to stay out of the masters' sight at the same time to see what was going on.

Po came back as Shen suffered through another violent fit of coughing. Ying was holding up a cloth for Shen to cough into , but he pushed it away.

"Alone-" he spluttered – "Leave me alone.."

"NO!" This was proving too much for Huo, who knelt and held Shen close to him.

"Don't you dare, Shen."  
"It's" cuff cuff caff!- "Lord She-"

"You'll always be Shen to me you stupid bird!"

Shen tried to push Huo away.

"Why- why did you stay with me. Why did you do this when you could have left at any time?"

Huo looked with teary eyes at the peacock.

"I promised Nana I'd take care of you. And I promised myself I'd protect you."

Shen didn't have anything to say.

"You're my friend, Shen, and,"

Huo swallowed hard

"And, I, l love you. And- and I can't let you die. Not on me here!"

"You-" Shen moaned with fatigue- "Gutless sap- weak cretin-"

"I don't care what you say, you dumb prince!"

He hugged him even harder.

"Just don't go…" Huo sobbed haplessly into Shen's robe, dampening it more.

Shen could feel something rupture inside him. But that was probably an internal organ failing.

Probably.

"I've lost everything- Everything that matters."

Shen was able to extricate himself from the over-emotional wolf.

"And nothing, nothing any of you fools can do to change that."

He could see the corners of his vision begin to darken.

"You haven't lost everything." Po spoke up.

Shen stared with bitter hateful eyes into the panda, wanting him to falter, to break and die before him.

"What about Li Yan?"

Shen tore himself away, choosing to look at the sky.

"She will never – never- want me again."

He hissed painfully.

It was getting darker.

"I walk in mires of blood for my sins."

Shen coughed once more.

"There- is no- going- go- going-"

The others began to move about rapidly, and he lost track as to whose voices belonged to whose.

"Shen!"

"Somebody get a doctor."

"It's no use- he's going."  
"SHEN!"

"No…"

"I can't watch this."

"SOMEBODY GET A DOCTOR NOW!"

"Shen….."

Shen gave a rattling sigh.

"No ..going.., ba…."

Shen's head fell to the side, and was still.

The kung Fu masters and Po stood solemnly by at the scene, as the townspeople behind them crept back up to where they were and gasped as what was previously unthinkable had come true.

Ying brought her hooves to her face and shook as she sobbed, kneeling by Shen.

Huo hands balled into fists. An unnatural moan crept from his closed mouth as his eyes spilt tears on the peacock's body. His teeth gritted, he threw his head to the sky and gave a long mournful howl into the dim dawning sky.

The howl echoed throughout the land of Gongmen, and everyone who was aware of the prince and the wolf's howls knew exactly what it meant.

The prince of Gongmen City was dead.

**A/N: …**

**Hope you liked.**

**I just couldn't leave this stewing in my head while I still had time in the summer hols to get this done.**

**Now for you homophobes, there is no Shen/Wolf Boss Slash. K? Sorry to say this on a kids rated story but just wanted to get it in the clear.**

**Although Shen is highly intelligent, cynical and flamboyant, he is NOT GAY. Neither will Huo/Wolf Boss in this story.**

**This is inspired by close friendship stories between Shen and Wolf Boss.**

**Anyhow- Kind of thought of Beowulf death scene with Shen.**

**As for previous chap, the bit with Po trying to tell Shen to stop swinging his sword is inspired by the scene from Disney's Tarzan when (SPOILERS!) Tarzan, despite having his gorilla father Kerchak being killed by and also himself been shot by Clayton, tries to tell him to stop swinging his machete when they are trapped in the vines. Clayton just ignores Tarzan and in his frenzied swinging cuts the wrong vine and ends up being hung by the neck in the vines, thus killing himself.**

**R&R- and stay tuned- this stuff's about to get epic**

**Just not right away cos I do haz a life, k?**

**See you soon **

**Defiant Candle.**


	7. The Judgement

**A/N: I'm back!**

The masters council led the tribunal of Huo Dun two days after Shen's death, and later burial.

Ying Sung was found not guilty, as she was more of a prisoner than an advisor.

A pretty nicely treated prisoner at that, and technically, sort of an advisor at the same time, just, well, not a very good one, in terms of like, leading a campaign to take over the world with cannons and wolves and other sorts of evilness.

Po was standing outside Gongmen Jail, where Shifu, Croc and Ox were trying the wolf, leant against the front door. Next to him, the furious five sat around.

He could just make out the voices of the masters, and Huo's voice as the trial went on.

Po found it hard to believe that the wolf who had helped Shen massacre the pandas and his family, put citizens in harms' way to stop Po for chasing him, and smacked him in the face with the hammer and socked him in the belly had a sensitive side, or was close to the crazy peacock who treated him like the stuff you scrape from your shoes.

Yeah, like, nasty stuff.

How could that friend put with so much abuse from Shen and still be his friend. Though, Po thought to himself- Shifu called him plenty of names and slapped him around during his first two weeks in the Jade Palace before he became the Dragon Warrior and still Po saw him as a role model and an awesome friend.

Po stopped looking around to consider it more.

Then again, Huo had to spend about, oh, thirty years with the guy since he turned evil.

Yeesh- Maybe the wolfs was just as crazy as the peacock was.

He woke from his thoughts in time to hear small footsteps coming towards the door.

"Guys- Shifu's coming."

The five straightened up as Shifu opened the door and walked out, supporting himself with Oogways' Staff.

"Po." Shifu looked up to the panda- "I need to speak with you for a moment. Alone"

Po closed his mouth from the suspense of wondering what Shifu was going to say and straightened up- "Sure- ok."

Po followed Shifu to around the corner of the building, to an alleyway that was isolated and had no windows or doors around them.

"So, what's up." Po shrugged.

Shifu lifted an eyebrow at the simple question, considering the seriousness of the matter.

"What's 'up' is that the trial for the wolf general's war crimes is coming to an end."

"Oh." Po's face lowered with concern.

"Yes. It will not be long before myself, Master Croc and Ox eventually arrive at an ultimate decision that will decide this, Huos' fate."

Po nodded.

"Uh, ok."

"Understand Po that for siding with an enemy that has wanted nothing but the subjugation of the whole world at the cost of innocent lives and bloodshed, the penalty is to be incredibly severe."

Po was puzzled.

"Oh what, so like, super super banishment or something or prison like with Tai Lung? Cos, I mean, I don't know if those'll work."

"My thoughts exactly, Po, but the punishment that is decreed by the scroll of law written by the law-makers within the council, and, unanimously chosen by Croc and Ox as well as myself, is more on the lines of," Shifu looked at his staff, moving a finger along the lines and carvings of the intricately twined branch as he hesitated to speak.

"What?" Po asked impatiently- "Come on, tell me!" Po had little experiences with court dealings and tribunals, and the suspense was beginning to kill him."

Shifu sighed, a sad look upon his face as he looked up at Po.

"..of death."

Po's eyes widened-

"What! For real?"

Shifu's nod answered his question

"I…" Po shook his head, lifting a paw in a slight shrug.- "This is, this is pretty extreme- I mean , banishing and butt-kicking are bad enough punishments but, but death- that is- wow?"

"What are your thoughts, Po?" Shifu patiently asked, holding his staff behind his back.- "Tell me what is going through your head right now."

Po shook his head in disbelief.

"I just- ok so I vanquished Tai Lung with the wushi finger hold and made him go poof, but- until two days ago, I've never been around someone dying before. Its still so, new to me."

"Not in the town you grew up in? No friends of your father who were old or ill." At this Po shook his head. "Nor did you ask Tigress how many boar and gibbons she had to kill with her bare hands to escape that trap laid for her by that gang leader? Vipers' failed negotiations with the python clan? Monkeys' duel with the komodo dragon of Xiang Chua Province. Crane when he was pulled into that hole that one time by a pack of foxes and he came out covered in dirt and what you called 'red clay'?" Another shake of Po's head.- "Mantis when he nearly got crushed in that bandit elephant stampede and had to 'sha cha –booey' his way out of there?"

"Oh yeah." Po reflected on that encounter- "That was an awesome fight.. but did he really..?"

Shifu sighed and lowered his head.

"Than this may be more difficult than I thought." He looked up at Po- "Your innocence is part of your unfailing charm as the fool with a golden heart, but you really have led a sheltered life."

Shifu looked to the end of the alleyway to check if no-one was watching, while talking.

"Death is an unpleasant business that we as protectors of peace must sometimes deal out in order to protect China from evil and sometimes from itself. But we are not barbarians; our judgements, though deemed sometimes as harsh by some citizens and politicians have been for the best of China and has resulted in countless lives being saved. I must ask you Po not to make this particular instant make you think otherwise."

There was pity and sympathy in Shifu's face as he spoke to Po- "I don't want you to take this to your heart that you are or ever will be a murderer, Po. I just want you to understand that someday, sooner or later, you too will have to take the life, or lives of a few certain people if you are to continue protecting your home, loved ones and China as the Dragon Warrior."

Po looked down at this. He shrugged slightly, suggesting indifference, but his voice was much more mellower.

"I think I understand, I guess. I mean, the moment I flexed my pinkie I knew I was ending things for Tai Lung, and there was that boar bandit that I jumped on and twisted his neck with my legs coming up to that winter holiday. I mean I heard a click, but I didn't think I did any harm- turned out he was stunned, thank goodness and was fine and dandy, heh heh." Po laughed, automatically trying to lighten up the mood, most likely for himself.- "Ready to try and bash me about with his mace/hammer thing again as soon as he was up, heh." He finished nervously.

"And then there was Shen. I mean, when I saw that cannon coming down, I was thinking of myself-I mean earlier I was trying to save Shen and talk him out of it, but he just wouldn't stop. If his wolf friend didn't help, then, I don't think I would have been able to save him. But, even so, if things were different, I would have, tried at least."

"You would have?" Shifu asked.

"Well yeah- I mean- I didn't want him to die, but I didn't want him to be all gracious and change his mind just like that, but, I couldn't see myself just, taking someones life with no, mystical after effect or causing them to take themelves out, I just couldn't."

"Even when you knew he killed your family when you were still a cub."

Po looked down, with a soft sad look on his face, mostly mourning the memory of his family than his original family at all.

"I, barely remember my first family. Just, flashes and dreams of them- like I barely knew them, and I had my adoptive dad."

"Ah yes, Mr Ping. No doubt he'll be glad to see you when you get back."

"Yeah."

"So, what are your feelings for the wolf?"

"I…." Po looked to the corner as memories and visions of him as a cub being carried in his mothers arms, running away in the thick snow in the dark forests, away from the red fires of the burning village, from the crazed wolf and the manic peacock with the bloodied sword in close pursuit. The screams of that memory, vividly refreshed after his achievement of inner peace, came back as well and he blinked and turned away.

"I don't know what to think.- I mean, I didn't really know the two until I was greeted with Huo's hammer two weeks ago, and Shens' genuinely bad attempts to dramatic speeches just three and a half days ago, so no secret grudges or burning need for vendettas or whatever here, honest." Po half-smiled.

He then frowned slightly.  
"Why are you asking this?"

Shifu set his staff's bottom to the ground for support.

"I wanted to know if your feelings on this matter were perfectly clear."

"Well they're clear, like, crystal." Po put out at ease.

"And they are..?"

That question caught him off guard.

"They're, well, neutral. Still a little angry at him for getting in those lucky shots, but I feel sorry for him, because of what Shen did to him and that he still tried to be his best friend until the end, and he's still in bad shape from those knives- I mean- they must have hurt like crazy, like-"

"Po."

"Yeah- well, neutral, with a bit of pity."

Shifu nodded, his eyelids lowered.

"I see."

"Shifu- master-" Po pressed on.- "I don't understand- why are you asking me all these questions- what is, well the point?- I don't want to kill the guy in his sleep or something- I mean pfft- no way!"

Shifu held the staff with both hands as he looked down to stare at Po's belly.

"I wanted to know that your feelings for Huo Dun were not those of retribution or revenge, though I would understand if they were. The reason I am asking you about this is that we have each already decided our verdict, before the end of the trial."

"What?" Po spoke incredulously. "You've already decided?- but why didn't you tell me that first?"

Shifu held up a hand.

"I was just getting to that." Before continuing- "the reason I did not tell you first was that I was to make sure your feelings would not interfere," Shifu looked up again at Po, "with what you will have to do."

Po nodded, though his face showed obvious signs that he didn't get it.

"Huo Dun has been found guilty, and is to be sentenced immediately so to bring the townspeople's minds to rest and for the authorities to see justice meted out on this criminal."

Po's face was still confused.

"As the Dragon Warrior, you are bound by the same law that the masters council is under. Your duty is to enact the will of the council and see to the sentencing or enactment of the council's judgment."

Po's eyes squinted as he processed this.

"Wait so I'm responsible for the sentencing, but the council had a pretty severe punishment- wasn't- radish poisioning no- was it-" Po's eyes suddenly widened, as the elusive fact hit home.

Shifu nodded gravely as Po came to terms with this.

"I- I have to execute Huo?" he spoke softly at this realisation.

"…Yes."

"B-but- I- I can't-" Pos' reaction was explosive- " I just- I did take what you just said, about me having to take a life sooner or later, I just didn't expect it to be well, sooner, like today sooner!"

"Yes, I understand." Shifu held up a hand and closed his eyes, secretly hoping the ranting panda would stop and not attract any attention from passers-by. "I wanted to know that what your feelings were so that none of them would interfere with the judgement of Huo. That you were focused, and not affected by biased as to withhold or increase the amount of suffering that Huo would have to endure during the punishment."

"So that was what all that talk was all about? Just to soften me up for the fact that I have to kill someone, properly, officially?" Po yelled hysterically, switching easily from shock to anger.- "What, do I have to be in your secret club of assassins- or is there a special badge I had to earn from you guys like- OH I'M A KUNG FU WARRIOR AND I'VE JUST KILLED SOMEONE EH EH!- I mean- what is the deal with this-"

Shifu blurred up into the air in front of him, and Po found himself lying face first on his chin on the ground.

"Will you be quiet!" Shifu growled under his breath, his staff on top of the bridge of Po's mouth.

"Mmpph!" Po replied, for the tip of his tongue was sticking out of his mouth and firing spit at Shifus' feet.

"Po!" Shifu spoke gruffly to the panda.- "I understand that this would not be an easy thing for you to to do, but if you listen carefully, then you'll be able to realise that this task you have been asked to do may not be so bad afterall."

Shifu lifted his staff and Po opened his mouth and rubbed his nose as he stood up.

"Aacch!- Not bad? Not bad?- How can an execution be not a bad thing? All it does is kill people in like a 'polite' way or something."

"Aah. you see Po," Shifu lifted a finger derisively- "Not all executions end in death."

"What?" Po spoke again- "Great, another riddle- you're definitely beginning to sound more like Oogway."

Shifu spoke, one of his small hands held up with two fingers bending forward as he

"You'll be glad I follow him as my example to this day, when I tell just how exactly the Wushi Finger hold really works….."

**A/N: Audience: NOOOO- Y U KILL WOLF BOSS! FIRST SHEN AND NOW HUO- crying face :'(**

**Relax, my audience- all will become clear soon enough.**

**That incident with the boar Po mentioned was from the Kung Fu Panda Holiday Special, the part where Po deals with that boar in a very, well, not-kiddy kind of way. Like Po says it, I reckon the neck snap was putting a bone out of joint of something, like a special kung fu technique that is non-lethal and immobilises the enemy, rather than, well, you know, kills them, which is definitely what it looked like.**

**But hey, what do I know?- **

**Anyhow**

**R&R!**

**Update will be soon!**


	8. The Final Chapter

**To fans of my Kung Fu Panda Drabble Collection,**

**A lot of developments have come up over the past few weeks which have and will make future writing for fanfiction very difficult. I have just been accepted into a university and will be too busy to finish off this fanfiction. So to all you fans and fangirls out there I deeply apologise for being unable to finish this off for you, and that I didn't mean to lead you on only to stop the entire story altogether for you. I have decided to stop writing fanfiction entirely so that I can focus on Uni life and work. I also have to be honest- as awesome as writing my own story is, it can sometimes be painful and a source of negativity for me. I'm partially convinced I have either Aspergers or ADD or both and part of the reason I turned to writing was due to my sense of isolation as a result of being ostracised by my own year group, being misunderstood and all that. Now I have the chance to begin anew on a clean slate, I want to live my life the best I can and not have it smothered by my writing or other solitary pursuits.**

**I would wish the same to be done with yourselves. As enjoyable and fun as the escapism of fanfiction is, it isn't living life or experiencing it to the full. Whether you have aspergers, autism or ADD or not, you are still human, and deserve to take time in your life to spend it socialising, going and experiencing life to the best of your ability. Sure, there can be ugly moments and at times it can be difficult, but part of truly living is focus only on the positive, and in turn seeing the positives in negative circumstances. To you young people out there, if you suffer from lack of social confidence, it's perfectly normal- you just need more experience in the socialising front. Talk to friends, family, people who have been there and done that- get the experience. As wonderful as the experience of life can be, it isn't worth living alone.**

**Do you want to look back on your life and say that I lived, loved, lost and won, or say I spent my life writing stories and putting them on the internet. Be honest to yourself- writing is the projection of our hopes, dreams, feelings, frustrations, neuroses and failures, and while this can be used to beautiful artistic effect, the exploitation does have a more painful side to it. For myself, writing the villains forced me to look at my painful past, fixate on my negative feelings and to tap into my darker side, and when I finished, I felt so removed and alienated from my own family and friends that it disturbed me, deeply. I have decided that I do not wish to place myself in those circumstances anymore, which is why I have chosen to end my fan-fiction writing. It takes up too much of my life and messes me up.**

**If you can write and it doesn't affect you mentally at all, and you can take it all in your stride, by all means do it, but remember that you are in control and that you chose the path in life you lead. Don't hide behind writing- live, rather than exist to write. You are more than just a vessel of creativity. You are human, and there is much more to life than simply writing about it.**

**Right, enough waffling- **

**Now, I understand that while I am no longer writing this fic, I am of course aware that this story is no longer finished yet and you will be wondering what happens to Huo and Shen.**

**So here is a rough summary of the ending of the story of Shen, with incomplete parts for the story filling in for the more important moments.**

_The next day after the sentencing, Huo is taken to a row boat and Po rows him to the middle of the massive river, in front of Gongmen city for all the civilians to see. The escort of antelope guards leave with their ships and Po unties one of Huo's hands._

"Is," Po softly spoke, gulping before he began his sentence again- "Is there anything you wanted to say before-" He shook his head slightly, still at a loss for words-" any last words?"

Huo glanced at the city, the mighty proud city in which he had spent his years in youth in. Years spent with a friend he knew he would never see again.

"Just, just get it done."

_Po nods and applies the wushi finger hold. There is a bright yellow flash as a shockwave of chi washes across the river and through Gongmen City. When it clears, Huo is nowhere to be seen._

* * *

_Much later, the following night, Master Shifu walks the gardens of Gongmen Palace, marvelling at the wonders and natural beauty of the plant life. He eventually comes across Shen's grave. He looks upon it with an air of neutrality and some pity, before walking on._

_All seems quiet._

_Suddenly the earth at Shen's grave ruptures and then explodes. Shen bursts out of his grave, dirty and bloodied, but alive nonetheless._

"At last." Shen took a breath and scanned the red sky and the courtyard- "AT LAST!"

He clambered out of the mound of dirt that was up to his waist and staggered onto the ground.

"I- I am alive!"

"That you are , indeed." A gruff voice spoke next to him. Shen whipped his head to his right to see Master Shifu, still stood calmly with his hands behind his back, holding his staff.

"I am impressed." Shifu spoke- "Almost. You waited patiently to complete the final part of the form of feigned death and resurrection, as performed and mastered by Master Armadillo. No one has fully mastered this art for nearly two hundred years, and you came close."

Shifu walked until he stood in front of the rugged peacock.

"Of course the final and most crucial part of the form, is to not get caught while 'ressurrecting', if I remember correctly."

Shen lowered his eyelids into slits- "You…"

"I have always found it odd…" Shifu cocked his head to the right- "How you would abhor the very practice of Kung Fu, and yet before and here, now, you use it as a means to survive and protect yourself."

Shifu drew a spare knife he had kept in the event he should, but hopefully not get spotted by anyone while escaping his grave.

"You may be skilled, Lord Shen." Shifu opened his hands and stood with his staff held with its end on the ground with one hand- "But you have so much to learn what it means to be a master Kung Fu."

"I suppose there's some great irony behind all this, but you know what?" Shen drew even more blades and splayed his wings out in a combat pose

"I don't even care!"

_Shen attacks Shifu, but Shifu easily out-fights Shen, even shattering one of his blades with a strike from his staff. He eventually catches him in the Wushi finger hold._

"What the devil is this?" Shen asked, trying to pull his wing away.

"The Wushi Finger Hold.

"Another technique too impractical and mystical for me to understand? Don't waste my time." Shen panted and huffed –"Just kill me and get it over with."

"You fail to understand- you are still ignorant to the true ways of kung fu. When I flex my pinkie finger, it will give you something that will change your life forever."

"And what would that be?"

Shifu spoke a more softer tone

"A second chance."

Shifu's pinkie finger flexed, and all Shen saw was white.

* * *

_In the next chapter, a wolf with one eye and many scars, lying the middle of a desert plain is awoken by a large muscular snow leopard, who despite his intimidating appearance, is rather intimidated by him. The pair talk and gradually become friends, even though they don't know their own names. Suddenly there is a flash and an albino peacock with red eyes and feathers on his train falls out of the sky and lands on top of the pair. When the confusion clears, the trio introduce themselves to each other and become somewhat good friends, with the peacock immediately developing a stuck-up reputation, the snow leopard for being stupendously shy, and the wolf for his uh, intelligent side._

_With no clue as to where they are, or who they are, the three decide to head off to find a settlement where they can get some answers._

_Suddenly they find a large metal box, which, upon opening, they discover clothes, and weapons. _

_The leopard takes the nunchuka, and calls himself Kuai Jiao- swift strike. _

_The wolf takes the bow staff, so that he can defend himself on all sides to compensate for his impaired vision. He calls himself Hao Chi- Heroic Blaze. _

_The peacock takes a simple Chinese sword, complaining that it is not as big as Hao's staff and will mean that he will have to move more in a fight. Reluctantly he accepts it, and names himself Gao gui Jia- Noble Sword._

_They walk on, talking about the mysterious circumstances and how strange it is that none of them can remember how they each ended up in the desert in the first place._

_Suddenly, they see a cart, drawn by a poor family of pigs getting ransacked by a bandit group of komodo dragons, wolves and tigers._

"What," Jiao licked his lips, nervously, his voice timid and uncertain. He stood behind Jiao and peeked out behind the peacock.- "What should we do?"

Hao huffed with disdain. "Leave them. I don't think we should get involved."

Gao continued to stare as the group forced the family off their cart. His feathers gripped the handle of his sword.

"No." Gao spoke.  
"What?" Jiao seemed to yelp.-"Listen to the wolf- there's too many of them for us to take all at once."

"We're more armed then they are." Gao unsheathed his sword- "At least from what, I can see anyway."

He looked at Hao and Jiao, both looking very reluctant.

"Oh come on." Gao rolled his eyes- "It can't be that hard. Lets just try to scare them off."

Gao walked off towards the group.

"Oh brother." Hao shook his head and began to follow him. "Dumb birds gonna get killed for sure." He glanced back at the cowering Jiao. "Come on, pussycat. S'matter, you scared?"

Jiao swallowed, but tried to straighten up a bit.

"I'll be perfectly honest; I am a little."

Hao scoffed and ambled off after the peacock on two legs.

"Come on baby. You're bigger than these guys. Just follow me and just, I dunno, look tough."

Jiao quivered a bit, but gradually stood straight and shadowed Hao as they walked towards the bandits after Gao.

Gao was a little scared himself, but something fiery swelled within him at the sight of this, injustice. He couldn't stand by and just do nothing.

He looked at the family. The father spoke up to the leader, a giant, ancient looking but powerful komodo and gestured to his family, trying to reason with him, no doubt.

He froze when the dragon brought his hand up and smacked the pig across the cheek, sending him stumbling, dazed, into his family.

One of his children cried out and started weeping.

It was then that Gao lost it. He really couldn't stand to see this, this brutish display of violence to a family. A poor family at that. Gao didn't feel that sorry for the poor, but he didn't like the idea of innocent and defenceless people being harmed.

"COME ON!" Gao yelled back at his two companions. The albino peacock raised his sword and opened his beak, giving out a call, a lifting, piercing call that signalled his kinds cry for battle.

It sent shivers down the spines of everyone who heard it. The komodo dragon looked up at the source.

"A peacock?" He hissed with malice. He turned to the looting bandits.

"We have guests, boysss."

"Aw great." Hao shook his head and began to race towards after Gao, who was racing towards the leader with a vicious intent in his eyes and his sword gleaming behind him.

"It's a fight!"

"Oh no!" Jiao quailed- "I don't like fights- I really don't!"

"Hurry it up!"

"Ohh." Jiao wailed shakily and gradually loped off after Hao.

The bandit group studied their new enemies.

"Ha!" The leader examined them as they began to close distance. "An easy one boys. We have a birdy, a one-eyed dog."

"AND TAI LUNG!" A tiger pointed at the grey blur following the wolf.

"The snow leopard?!" The leader squinted his eyes at the big cat.

"Sir!" A wolf spoke up- "I know the wolf and the peacock. I used to serve with them before I deserted."

"Well who are they?"

"Lord Shen, that prince who killed an entire village of pandas, and his vicious guard and protector Huo Dun, the brawler of the Himalayas!"

The Komodo looked back at the group of attackers, now metres away. He could see the peacock's angry eyes with bloody intent in them, the fangs and rugged mane of the wolf and the muscles rippling up and down the leopards back and arms.

"Boys…" The komodo began to slowly back away from the cart, grasping at the handle of a large dagger concealed in his belt- "We may have a problem…."

_To cut it short, and excuse the use of language, they kicked their asses._

"Oh man." Hao shook his head- "That was just awesome! We kicked butt!"

"That was…" Jiao was shaking a bit- "That was a bit scary."

"Are you kidding me?! You were scary! At first you were all like- stay back- I know how to use these- just, swinging them around and covering your head- oh! and the best one- don't hurt me!- " Hao laughed and slapped his knee "And then that komodo nicked you on the arm and the way your eyes just lit up- you got so mad and broke that guys face with one punch!"

"I..", "I don't know what came over me." Jiao was sat down now, hugging his legs and rocking himself in his distressed state, his voice quiet and unnerved.

"And you!"

Hao pointed his staff at Gao, a little ruffled but unharmeded-" Who turned you into mister dances-with-blades- I'm still reeling over that no one got killed with you spinning and slicing and flying and –and- more spinning!"

Gao brushed his head feathers, slicking them back and brushing off his robe and slops.

"Well- I" He was inside, glowing with pride. He had just saved innocent lives, using nothing but skill of his blade and his fighting prowess alone. He looked at the posing wolf and the shocked shaking leopard, murmuring to himself in a panicked voice. Well, he had some help he supposed.

"I simply reacted. Followed my instinct."

_The three heroes are told by the family that the roads to the nearest town are constantly patrolled by bandits, and the town itself is owned by the leader of the bandits. _

_Gao decides to lead the trio to the town, with Hao calling themselves the Three Swords, the San Jia a daring and courageous group formed to stop highwaymen and the bandit group. In their bid to liberate the town, they hope to find the answers to their origins._

_They set off immediately._

* * *

_In the next and final chapter._

A whisper.

That was all it took to stop Master Swan Li Yan's meditation.

The Swan Master opened her eyes and looked outside the window, where a sliver of mountain snow had whisked itself through.

Standing up, her feathers stroking the chamber floor and causing rustling echoes throughout the monastery styled room, she went to the doors and opened the doors.

The snow was faint and soft, and the wind was gentle. Her eyes tried to scan the mountains and the clowns as she walked onto the platform that surveyed the entire mountainscape of the Himalayas.

There was something different in the winds, a feeling, a different flow to it like an irregular heartbeat, but not unnatural, like a voice or a song placed in the currents. She could sense it and yet not see it, and that was what frustrated her.

She listened more, centering herself and allowing her perception to tune into the music of nature.

Then she heard it again. And stepped back and opened her eyes in shock.

"Shen?"

He was still alive.

And to her own surprise, and against her better judgement, she found herself smiling at the sound of his name.

She looked on at the snow-capped spine of the mountains, and down upon the country that she had sworn to protect. She felt many things, grief, anger, sorrow, joy, ecstasy, and happiness, torn and conflicted. But somehow, in some-way, she felt, no, just knew, that everything was going to be alright.

**Well there you have it. A rushed, incomplete conclusion to the Shen's death story. Rate and review if you want.**

**I'd thought I'd leave it on a positive note, one of optimism. Of course, there will be a darker side to it when the heroes will have to find out sooner or later about their dark pasts, but it's important to note that they weren't born evil to begin with.**

**So as for the whole wushi finger hold doesn't kill thing, to all those who have written Lung redemption fics and used the no kill wushi thing in their story, apologies, it just seemed like a nice story device. No copying or idea stealing intended.**

**It's been an honour to write for this website. I will miss you guys.**

**Just, take into account what I said earlier ok? Writing doesn't have to be your life.**

**If you enjoy it and love it, do it. But remember that writing, even for constructive purposes, tends to take up days, weeks of your life, and being creative has its drawbacks.**

**Find other things that you can enjoy doing and do them.**

**Don't look at life and write some stuff about it. Go out there and live it.**

**Defiant Candle, signing out.**

**Peace out guys**


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